It's All Fun and Games Until Bulma is the Prize
by wopass
Summary: It's time once again for the intergalactic games, and this year Vegeta has been invited! What's the catch? Bulma is a prize and the only way to keep her safe is to win every single fight, can Vegeta pull out all the stops?
1. Let the Games Begin

Well this is my very first offical DBZ fanfic ever so leave me lots of comments on way to improve! I've been a huge DBZ fan most of my life but I must admit that within the last year or so I've probably only seen a max of 10 episodes. So I don't really know the time line but I hope I know the characters well enough.

I don't own DBZ, this is just the usual disclaimer

**Let the Games Begin**

"Testing…Initializing Scripts…Testing…Running Scripts…Testing…"

"Come on…come on…" Bulma whispered under her breath. She had been slaving away on a new prototype computer chip that would revolutionize computers once again. But every time she thought she made a break through…

"Error...Error…Database overload…Server crashing…Error"

Bulma snatched a nearby screwdriver and quickly went to work on the screws on the case enclosing the chip. The exhaust fan, an addition after the last failure, began spewing smoke and Bulma felt her eyes begin to water.

"Don't you dare blow up you little…" Bulma muttered as she jammed the screwdriver under the cover and pushed with all her strength. The cover shot off amidst a mass of putrid black smoke, causing Bulma to stumble back in dismay.

In a flash of anger Bulma backhanded the prototype off the table where it collided with the wall and burst into smoking pieces. With a brief high-pitched wail the fire alarm sounded and the sprinkler system engaged. With an exasperated sigh Bulma collapsed against the wall and pulled her knees to her chest. The deadline for the chip was fast approaching and she wasn't making any headway.

Scratching her chin Bulma wondered, "What could possibly be causing the chip to malfunction..."

A sharp beep brought her out of her thoughts. Looking around the blinking LED display of a nearby computer caught her attention. Pulling herself up she wiped her drenched hair out of her face and examined the message on the screen.

The message was being transmitted from a satellite orbiting the Earth that was designated to report any anomalies. Bulma scanned the report and typed in the command to bring up a visual. The camera mounted on the satellite came to life and Bulma found herself looking down on Earth. She typed in a few more commands and the footage captured of the anomaly entering the atmosphere flashed across the screen.

Furrowing her eyebrows Bulma replayed the footage again, this time frame by frame. The object had flown by so fast that even frame by frame, which would reveal every little detail on any asteroid, it was a mere blur. Bulma's mind began to whirl, images of Frieza and his fellow icejin danced before her eyes.

With a few more commands the objects predicted trajectory was superimposed on a 3D model of Earth. Bulma felt her stomach drop into her heels as the red X marked the trajectory right into her backyard.

Turning on her heel she bolted from her lab and directed her own trajectory to intercept the anomaly in the backyard. Her lab coat billowed behind her as she sprinted down the hallway.

She arrived at the patio completely out of breath but upon first glance nothing seemed out of place. Just as she was turning to go get Vegeta a shimmer caught her eye. Turning back she realized something about the yard was not quite right.

A flash of silver twinkled in the sunlight before it buried itself deep within Bulma's arm. The long narrow dart protruded from the arm of her lab coat and small droplets of blood began to soak through the fabric where that dart had broken her skin. Instantly the muscles in her arm ceased their movement, ignoring all commands her brain sent to them. A tingling sensation shot across her body, as if it were falling asleep. Helpless, all Bulma could do was let out an ear splitting scream and pray Vegeta would make it to her in time.

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The prince was crouched in utter darkness, listening and waiting. Saiyain eyes were far more powerful than that of a mere human but without a single particle of light to be detected even his far superior eyes saw nothing but darkness.

With the gravity room humming all around him he felt the hairs on the back of his neck prickle, then the tiniest movement of air tickled the tip of his nose and he locked on his target. In one swift motion he sprang forward and slammed his fist into one of Bulma's droids. A stray piece of metal collided with another droid in the darkness and Vegeta's signature smirk haunted his lips. Dropping back into a crouch he sent a stunning low kick into the air behind him, resulting into a satisfying metallic crunch as the droid met its demise.

As he crouched, awaiting any trace of his next victim, brief high-pitched wail assailed Vegeta's sensitive ears. Almost instantly the emergency lights lit up the room and all the droids in the room instantly shut down. With a growl Vegeta stode toward the door and slammed his hand on the release.

"Where is that damn woman" he wondered as he reached out and felt for her feeble life force. She wasn't hard to find, she was on her lab per usual. With a frustrated snort he began to storm in her direction when he felt her kai begin rapidly moving through the hallway.

"Good, she'd better be scrambling to fix her stupid mistake" he thought to himself but he held his course, he'd make sure this didn't happen again.

By the time he reached the end of the hallway he realized she wasn't headed toward the electrical closet, which was actually a very large room, but instead she was headed outside.

"Is that worthless woman trying to avoid me? What the hell is she thinking" he muttered to himself, his anger rising.

With a flare of his nostrils he balled his fists at his sides and picked up his pace. Just as he was about to turn the corner toward the kitchen he heard Bulma scream. Without a second thought he took to the air and blasted off at full speed toward the backyard.

Uneasiness tugged at Vegeta as he flew, he didn't sense any other living life force in the area. The woman's parents were at some conference and all the employees had Sunday off.

Within seconds Vegeta was on the patio and his superior saiyan eyes spotted the ship immediately. It was tall and elliptical containing two smaller space pods, closely resembling a pea pod with the space pods being the peas. His charcoal black eye scanned the yard but no other life force seemed to be present.

Barely picking his feet up off the ground he flew over to the pods and examined them. Each pod was a perfect circle; almost exactly like the saiyan space pods except these were stacked on top of each other.

Flying up to the top one and coming to a float he could sense that Bulma was inside. He reached out a hand and felt the metal, trying to detect any sort of latch or handle. Blowing the damn thing up was too risky, he didn't know enough about them to be sure he wouldn't hurt her in the process.

"Why hello there your highness!" Came a robotic chirp of a voice from below. In a heart beat Vegeta was on the ground, his black eyes nearly aflame with anger.

Beside the spaceship was a smallish metal figure, elliptical like the ship with a long, thin rod extending out from the main body that seemed to be the source of the robots mobility. It hovered a few inches above the ground and couldn't seem to keep still. Toward the top of the body, where a face would usually reside there was a single lens that served as an eye of sorts.

"Good day Prince Vegeta, you are humbly invited to attend the annual intergalactic games. We have already collected your prize and we have a space pod ready for your departure" chirped the robot, gesturing toward the top pod that held Bulma.

"Be warned that if you are inclined to decline our invitation we will still keep your prize" and with a metallic beep the pod shot into the sky and off into space.

Vegeta was suddenly filled with white-hot anger as he reached out and grabbed the robot between his hands. "What the fuck are you talking about" he spat between clenched teeth.

"Why Prince Vegeta I'm referring to the intergalactic games of course. You attended one year with icejin Frieza if I am not mistaken. It is the most well known tournament in the galaxy!" the robot happily chirped, seemingly unaware of the danger it was in.

"What do you mean Bulma is the prize" he growled, his anger crackling in the air around him.

"That is how the tournament works your highness. From each contestant we gather a prize, someone they'd put up a hell of a good fight for. Each round is to the death, so each time you win you acquire your opponent's prize in addition to your own. If you win all the prizes are yours to do with as you wish, whether it's keep them, sell them or trade them. The only way to keep your prize safe is to win" the robot happily reported.

With a roar of frustration Vegeta obliterated the robot in a flash of light in between his hands.

As if on cue the door to the second space pod opened with a _whoosh_, beckoning Vegeta inside. Without hesitation he climbed inside and the door shut behind him. Once inside Vegeta realized the pod was even smaller than he thought, once inside there was no room to sit down or even move. Although the exterior was perfectly circular it seemed the interior was merely this tube of a room.

With a _rumble_ the craft took off, leaving Earth far behind.

Almost instantly Vegeta felt his power over his body leaving him as he struggled to keep his eyelids open. He could hear a distant hissing sound, but it sounded worlds away. His brain was sluggish and it took him a moment to comprehend what was happening. The pod was releasing some sort of gas that was putting him to sleep. His eyelids drifted closed as he slipped into unconsciousness.

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Bulma has been kidnapped in the name of the intergalactic games and the only way Vegeta can keep her safe is to win every battle. Can Vegeta pull out all the stops?


	2. Welcome to the Games

On the last episode of Dragonball Z Bulma was kidnapped in the name of the intergalactic games and the only way Vegeta can keep her safe is to win every battle. Can Vegeta pull out all the stops?

**Welcome to the Games**

Bulma was slowly pulled out of her unconscious stupor by a chill running down her spine. She tried to move but to no avail, she couldn't even open her eyes.

The nagging coldness on her back began forcing the grogginess from her mind and she was beginning to think clearly.

With a groan she tried to sit up and flee from the cold at her back but she found herself restrained. Forcing her eyes open she tried to look down but her head couldn't move.

Bulma felt the fist of fear clench around her heart as she tried to move every limb but found every single part of her restrained.

Forcing herself to exhale she closed her eyes and forced her brain to comprehend. She could feel the pressure of restraints wrapped around her whole body, from her head to her chest to each wrist to her waist to each knee then each ankle.

Just as the panic in her heart began to subside she realized she was completely naked. The cold eating away at her back was from the table-like structure she was tied to. It seemed to be some sort of metal although it was not completely smooth, it had a texture similar to stone but it was far too cold to be stone.

Soon Bulma became aware of a breathing noise that was not her own and her heart filled with dread.

"Who's there!" She cried out with some difficulty, her teeth where chattering now and her brain was whirling with thoughts of hyperthermia.

Instead of answering the source of the noise walked into her field of vision and peered down at her.

Bulma couldn't help but scream. The creature had a head similar to that of horse but much wider, but not quite as wide as a dairy cow. It had eyes that were red and menacing placed on either side of the head. It's eyes locked on Bulma's and she found herself unable to move even if she could.

When it opened it's mouth and bellowed Bulma's heart couldn't take anymore, she slipped back into the dark embrace of unconsciousness.

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Somewhere nearby Vegeta's eyes shot open as the sound of Bulma's scream penetrated his mind and vanquished the darkness.

Within moments he was aware that he was still confined in the tube of the spacepod he had left Earth in. As he clenched his fists to release a wave of his kai that would blow his confinement to smithereens, a strange chill emanated from his neck, draining the force of his kai away.

Clenching his jaw he realized he had some sort of device around his neck, a kai inhibitor no doubt.

Closing his eyes his mind swept outward, feeling for the life forces of others. With a growl he confirmed he was in a building containing a multitude of other beings, some mind bogglingly powerful and others barely noticeable, but only one of them was human.

Reaching out to Bulma he found her once again unconscious but very much alive, and very close by.

Unsure if the kai inhibitor would drain his physical strength he braced his back against the tube and pushed with his arms. With a satisfying _snap_, the tube split open and fell to the ground.

Vegeta found himself in some sort of lab like room, with monitors lining the walls reporting different readings. Upon closer inspection the monitors were reporting feedback on _him_. He couldn't help but smirk when he spotted his power levels displayed proudly on one of the larger screens.

Looking back at the wreckage of the tube he realized it was in fact the inside of the space pod but it had been removed from the outer casing and transported here, were numerous colored wires had been attached presumably to record what was now displayed on the monitors.

Vegeta felt the life form before he saw it. Without turning around he turned his head and locked onto the being out of the corner of his eye. His normally hard exterior cracked and his face contorted in surprise. He turned to face the being, which he now recognized as a Meuhvache.

The Meuhvache had a similar body structure to that of a mythological centaur but the resemblance ended there. Its whole body was covered in a short fur, similar to that of a cow, and was almost all white with the exception of large black spots here and there.

It had large hand-like structures for feet, similar to that of a primate, with four fingers and a thumb. Its legs resembled that of a horse except they were much larger and all muscle. The body held the rough shape of a horse except with something more similar to a rabbits tail instead of the longhaired tail of horse.

The upper body, think that of a centaur but instead of being the human part of the creature it's just a continuation of the rest of the body, had a broad muscular chest and a pair of strong muscular arms jutting out from the shoulders. It had something similar to hands but bulkier and with only three fingers and a thumb.

It had a short, thick neck that supported a head that ranged somewhere between a horse and a cow. Its ears closely resembled that of a moose, with short antler-like structures rising up from its head.

His mind's eye swept back in time; arriving at the intergalactic games he attended as a young boy at the side of Frieza. Vegeta watched the slaughter with a sly smirk, _those fools_ he had thought. Even at a young age the dark prince enjoyed watching the pain of others. All those fools fighting for some loved one, _ha I will never be that weak_.

But here he was. And they had the only thing in the universe he cared about. As a child he had watched countless warriors, strong and brave warriors, lose their fight. He had always assumed the pain on their face was inflicted from their wounds, but now he recognized it as something far more torturous.

It was the pain of failure. Not just a failure to oneself, but also failure to protect someone you care about. A pain he never understood until now.

As a warrior you are forced to forfeit love and all it's comforts in lieu of power and glory.

After all, who could love a monster that took the lives of millions of innocents and enjoyed doing it? One word rang throughout his whole being, _Bulma_.

He had once thrived in the lonely darkness, but once someone brings a light into that darkness it never goes out. Without Bulma there would still be light, a ghostly reminder of what once was, but there would be no warmth and no comfort.

His mind's eye brought him back to the present, where the Meuhvache was still patiently waiting. Balling his fists and curling his lips into a snarl he growled, "Take me to her."

The Meuhvache said nothing, only turned and walked back through the hallway from which it had come. Vegeta had no choice but to follow.

Vegeta's eyes darted back and forth as they walked through a labyrinth of hallways, which branched into a seemingly endless number of rooms.

Glancing into the rooms that had been left open he spotted other rooms similar to the one they had just left, however these were all empty.

After what seemed like hours to Vegeta, but could only have been mere minutes, they arrived in a much smaller room than the one they had come from. It's only occupant was a small cot and a door that presumably led to some sort of bathroom.

Vegeta let out a snarl that implied, _where the fuck is she_. With a nod of understanding the Meuhvache flipped a switch on the wall the lights dimmed and one of the walls seemed to disappear. On the other side was Bulma, unconscious and strapped to a table.

Vegeta's sharp saiyan eyes took it all in. She was covered from her neck to her ankles in some sort of blanket, but judging from the way it contoured to her body she was probably naked beneath. She was lying on a table, made of an unprocessed metal similar to copper.

There were banks of monitors mounted on the stark white walls that were keeping a close reading of her energy levels. Vegeta's eyes locked onto the monitor displaying her heart rate, and he felt his own heart begin to pound in rhythm with hers.

He strode over to the wall and reached out. Vegeta couldn't contain the growl that ripped from his throat when his fingers encountered a solid material. He recognized it as a material similar to that of one-way glass on Earth.

Vegeta could see her, but Bulma could not see him.

He took a step back, and slammed a fist into the glass with all his might. Surprisingly it help firm, without so much as a sound.

A distant typing sound reminded him that the Meuhvache was still in the room. Glancing over his shoulder he could see the creature at work on a monitor jutting out from the wall beside the door.

Turning his attention back to Bulma he noticed that enough though she was unconscious her body was shivering. He tried to extend his kai and share some of his warmth, but the kai inhibitor drained it all away.

Angrily he turned on his heel and marched over to the Meuhvache. Seizing it by the ear he whipped it around and shoved its face into the glass.

"If she freezes to death I will destroy this entire planet" he growled shoving the beast toward the door.

With a stomp of it's foot the creature left, closing the door behind it. A metallic click seemed to signify that the door was locked.

All the prince could do was sit on his cot, guard Bulma through the glass and wait.

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Bulma slowly began to regain consciousness. This time her mind was far less groggy but she was frozen. Bulma felt the tingling sensation that accompanied goose bumps all over her body, her teeth were chattering, and she was shivering uncontrollably.

A soft _click_ and a _whoosh_ marked the entrance of another one of those hellish creatures.

Practically holding her breath Bulma listened as it typed away on some unseen computer. All she could do was stare at the stark white ceiling and wait for something to happen.

Bulma let out a sigh as she felt the coldness at her back quickly recede and was soon replaced with a warm soothing sensation. The goose bumps smoothed back into her creamy soft skin and her teeth silenced their incessant chattering.

But the warmth only lasted a moment. Soon the cold was replaced by a burning and suddenly she felt as if someone had lit a fire beneath the table.

This time the sensation didn't reside just under her back but it ran the entire length of her body. She let out a blood curdling scream as she felt the skin of her backside begin to burn and bubble.

With no way of separating herself from the table she did the only thing she could think to do.

With every inch of her being she screamed out Vegeta's name, begging him to save her from his hellish torture.

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Vegeta and Bulma have arrived at the games and received a unique welcome. Without his kai will Vegeta be able to save Bulma? Will Bulma survive her hellish torture long enough to be saved? Find out next time on Dragonball Z


	3. Contestants, Start Your Engines

On the last episode of Dragonball Z Vegeta and Bulma had arrived at the games and received a unique welcome. Without his kai will Vegeta be able to save Bulma? Will Bulma survive her hellish torture long enough to be saved?

**Contestants, Start Your Engines**

Sweat was beginning to drip from Vegeta's brow as his muscles rippled beneath his firm skin. With one foot crossed over the other he was performing push ups, as he had been all night, with Bulma's screams playing over and over in his mind enough though they had long since ceased.

Every so often he would glance over at the monitors reporting her energy levels, reassuring himself that she was still alive.

Vegeta may have taken his anger out on the Meuhvache but it was Bulma who paid the price. She had once again passed away into unconsciousness, a brief reprieve from the pain she had endured.

There was no doubt in Vegeta's mind that Bulma's back was horrifically burned, he had seen the blood seep out from the table and stain the blanket red.

He spared a glance up at the monitor beside the door, it was counting to down to something although Vegeta had no idea what. Whatever it was he would find out in about an hour.

Completing one final push up and once again reassuring himself that Bulma would survive without his supervision for a few minutes, he retired to the bathroom to relieve himself and wash up. His stomach roared with hunger but he ignored it with a grunt. Hearing the door open he swiftly exited the bathroom to be greeted by another Meuhvache.

This one was clearly female, with something more like hooves for feet and two long white wings tucked tightly against her back. Vegeta vaguely remembered Frieza explaining the distinction.

This Meuhvache was holding a tray of food that ranged from meat to vegetables. Seems they wanted their contestants to be 100% ready to beat the crap out of each other.

He eyed the Meuhvache suspiciously as it tentatively stepped into the room and placed the tray on the bed. The Meuhvache turned its head ever so slightly in the direction of Bulma and something that looked like sadness seemed to grace it's features, but as quickly as it had come it was gone.

Without a sound it turned and left the room, leaving Vegeta to angrily eat what was left for him.

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Bulma awoke to tears already in her eyes, the pain radiating from her backside threatened to suffocate her. A whimper escaped her lips as her face contorted in pain and the tears fell freely from her eyes.

_Where is Vegeta? How could he just leave me to die like this? He's a hard man, but I really thought he cared about me…if not me at least his gravity machine. No one else can fix it like I can…Does he really hate me that much to abandon me here?_

Bulma heard her own heart skip a beat on the heart rate monitor as the door opened with a _whoosh_.

_Oh god, please just kill me_ she silently pleaded. She couldn't take any more pain.

Once again the face of a beast appeared above her but this one was somehow different. It wasn't quite so menacing, or maybe Bulma was too delirious with pain to care even if it was.

Then the face disappeared from view and she was left with nothing but the white ceiling for company.

A _snap_ echoed throughout the room and the pressure across her ankles was gone. Another _snap_ and her knees were free. The beast continued releasing her from her bonds until she heard the _snap_ right beside her ear as her head came free.

Even with her bonds broken she had no strength to move, she couldn't even bring herself to roll over off her back.

The creature seemed to understand her predicament and gently placed it's two big hands under her armpits and slowly began to pull her up.

A white-hot pain ripped through Bulma's body as she screamed bloody murder. The creature released her immediately and Bulma began to sob uncontrollably.

She could feel the hands gently try to lift up her left arm but the white-hot pain tore through her spine and she screamed until the pitch exceeded that of human hearing and she could not longer hear herself.

The big cow-like head appeared above her, with a look of utter sadness in its eyes. It lowered its nose and brushed it against her forehead. It seemed like some sort of apology and Bulma could do nothing to respond. She felt her mouth quivering uncontrollably as the creature once again placed its hands beneath her arms. With a low purr that Bulma assumed was supposed to be a word of comfort it gently but firmly removed her from the table.

Never in her life had Bulma experienced such pain. Once again she was lost to the darkness of unconsciousness before she could even scream.

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Vegeta could do nothing but watch the sickening display on the other side of the glass. The beast that had brought him his food was now attempting to remove Bulma from the table.

Vegeta could see the beast was trying to be gentle but he couldn't help the surge of anger and frustration when Bulma let out yet another ear splitting scream. Bulma may have been human but she was strong, she would never cry out in such a manner unless she was in horrific pain.

The beast and Vegeta shared a moment of sickening realization as the beast gently tried to move Bulma's arm. Under the intense heat from before Bulma's skin had melted more than slightly and had now attached her to the table.

Before returning to Bulma the beast glanced over in Vegeta's direction, a look of utter sadness and defeat on its face. Vegeta knew what was coming and he moved as close to Bulma as he could possibly get with the glass between them. Once again he tried to send her some warmth and comfort from his kai but it was merely drained away.

The beast took Bulma as gently as it possibly could and in one swift motion detached her from the table.

Vegeta nearly lost his food at the sickening sight of her back, or what was left of it. Caked in blood and pus Bulma's back was utterly destroyed. Collapsing, Vegeta began savagely pounding the floor with his fists. _I did that to her, it's all my fault._

A sharp beep cut the air and momentarily brought Vegeta out of his blind rage. Glancing up he realized the monitor had reached zero. Reaching out with his mind he detected the bastard that had tortured Bulma. To Vegeta's dismay the beast was not headed in his direction, but instead was making its way toward Bulma.

Hauling himself to his feet he peered back into the other room. The female beast had completely removed Bulma from the table and was hold her unconscious body against its chest. In one hand it held a medicine gun that it was using to apply red foam to Bulma's back.

The door in the other room burst open and from it emerged the bastard beast, red eyes glowing with delight. It strode over to the female beast and snatched Bulma from its arms. The female bellowed in objection, motioning with the medicine gun to Bulma's back. The male backhanded the female across the face, slamming her into an adjacent wall where the female collapsed while her legs folded underneath her.

The male walked over to the glass separating him from Vegeta and slammed Bulma's back against the glass. Red foam and blood shot out in every direction. Vegeta's rage threatened to eat him alive as he clenched and unclenched his fists. His nostrils flared and his eyes contracted to black specks as he slammed his fist into the glass.

The beast let out a bark that was something similar to laughter as he tossed Bulma on the ground beside the female and left.

The female looked at Vegeta with sadness in her face as she gently picked up the naked, bleeding and unconscious Bulma. With tender gentleness the female laid Bulma out on her back, stomach down, and used her wings to hold Bulma in place as she slowly left the room.

Vegeta angrily paced his room for an agonizing amount of time before the bastard beast appeared at his door.

With another bark of laughter at Vegeta's expense the bastard beast turned and lead the way down the hallway. Every molecule in Vegeta's body wanted to beat that bastard to a pulp, but every time the urge began to overwhelm him the image of Bulma's destroyed backside stopped his fists.

All he could do was angrily follow the bastard to what could only be the first round.

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With the first round looming around the corner Bulma was just barely able to cling to life. Will Vegeta be able to contain his rage long enough to ensure Bulma's survival? Will Vegeta be able to defeat his first opponent and save Bulma from the first round? Find out next time on Dragonball Z!


	4. Ding, Round 1

At long last it is still for the first round of the intergalactic games. As Vegeta makes his way to the battlefield he'd best prepare himself for the trials that lay ahead. What monstrous enemy awaits him?

**Ding, Round 1**

The meuhvache led Vegeta down countless hallways and through a maze of lifts and moving walkways.

Finally they emerged in a spacious, circular room. Vegeta could hear the crowd gathering in the stadium and the cheers of species from all across the galaxy.

Vegeta turned to face the meuhvache only to discover it had disappeared back out into the hallway, locking the door behind it.

With a snort Vegeta surveyed his surroundings. The room was certainly spacious, allowing plenty of room to warm up. Hanging from the ceiling in the center of the room was a screen that formed a complete circle. Scrolling across it was information about the upcoming battle and the contestants, no doubt the same information that was scrolling across the screens in the stadium.

Directly across from the door Vegeta had entered from was a set of double door that appeared locked, most likely the entrance to the stadium. On the far right wall there seemed to be a much smaller door, like that of a closet.

Vegeta strode over to the smaller door and flung it open. Inside was a blue saiyan uniform, complete with chest plate and boots.

Looking down it dawned on Vegeta that he was still wearing his training shorts and nothing else, he hadn't spared his wardrobe a second thought since he had left the gravity room.

Reaching out he relished the feel of real Saiyan fabric between his fingers. It was true enough that Bulma's mother had provided him plenty of duplicate saiyan suits but they were made from Earthly fabric, nothing near as strong or flexible as true saiyan fabric. Without hesitation he dropped his shorts and slipped into the suit.

Once he was dressed he began his vigorous warm up, one that would make even the strongest Earthling pass out from fatigue.

When he was nearly done a familiar robotic chirp shattered his concentration. "Greetings Prince! It's so nice to see you again, it's hard to believe only a year has gone by since you were here with the almighty Frieza."

Growling in displeasure Vegeta glanced up at a replica of the robot he had destroyed on Earth before getting in the pod. He vaguely wondered how many of those annoying tin cans they had laying around.

"Hmpf" Vegeta grunted, continuing his sit-ups.

"As you may recall our planet, Meuhvachidor, is several light years away from our sun making our years incredibly long" The robot happily chirped, although Vegeta had no idea why it felt the need to relay that information.

Vegeta did recall Frieza telling him about it. Meuhvachidor was so far away from its sun that if you looked for it in the sky it would be indiscernible from the millions of other stars. Several massive balls of energy, similar to the one he himself had used to transform into an ape the first time he came to Earth, kept the planet illuminated and the atmosphere tolerable.

The arena for the intergalactic games spanned the majority of the small planet. It housed hundreds of individual arenas, enough rooms to imprison millions of warriors and enough infirmaries to keep them alive long enough to die fighting. It brought in limitless amounts of revenue to the reptalthians who used this place for their scientific study.

Finishing his warm up he used the back of his hand to wipe the sweat off his face before kicking the robot square in the lens. Much to Vegeta's satisfaction it instantly shattered.

Warming up had greatly calmed his mind and the haze of white-hot anger that had previously clouded his vision was gone.

With a great _whoosh_ followed by a gust of dusty air the double doors swung open, beckoning him out into the field.

Vegeta squared his shoulders and clenched his fists at his sides as he strode out into the light.

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When Bulma awoke again she in complete darkness. The pain from her backside was now only a dull ache, but bit at her every time she moved.

Sitting up she felt her face and hair with her hands and took account of herself. Her hair was a tangled rat's nest matted with what could only be her own sweat and blood.

Clenching her jaw she began gently yanking the knots out, working her way from the tips of her hair to the scalp. By the time she was done she had spilled a few tears but she felt a little better.

Her face was completely caked in the remnants of tears, causing her skin to feel tight and dirty. Running her tongue over her lips she smoothed out the cracks that had formed, cleaning out the blood and removing the salt left from her tears.

Slowly she stood up, only to bump her head on a very low ceiling. Once again sitting she reached up and felt the ceiling with her fingertips. She followed it all the way in each direction, discovering she was in a small room with four walls.

Sitting down on her rear with her legs straight in front of her she could reach above her head and touch the ceiling, and reach to each side and touch the walls. If she leaned back she would smack her head on the wall behind her and if she scooted forward any her feet would hit the wall in front of her.

Taking a deep breath she examined each wall with her hands, feeling for some sort of latch or handle.

_If Vegeta won't lift a finger to save me then dammit I'll save myself. I am Bulma Briefs after all_, and Bulma instantly felt a little better.

Much to Bulma's dismay all sides of the room were perfectly smooth. With no foreseeable way out she pulled her knees to her chest and began to wonder how she could get herself out of this mess.

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Walking out onto the field Vegeta was instantly greeted with a mixture of cheers and boos. Superimposed on a jumbo-sized screen high in the air was an image of his face, as if he was being caught on video despite no camera's being blatantly obvious.

Another wave of cheers and boos rose from the crowd and Vegeta turned and looked down the field at his opponent. The field was about two football fields long, and elliptical in shape. The stadium rose up all around them, although no roof was visible from the ground Vegeta knew the elliptical opening at the top of the stadium was encased in glass.

When he was here as a child one of the contestants, a winged creature, attempted to flee by flying out the top. At the time Vegeta had laughed hysterically when the creature collided with the glass and dropped like a rock to the ground below.

Finally Vegeta locked eyes with his opponent. Although she appeared somewhat human at first glance she was definitely far from it. Her eyes were completely black, with no white to be found. Her entire top row of teeth where fangs that hung out over her lower lip and her hands were more like claws, even from a distance they appeared razor sharp.

The creature eyed him wearily, swaying back and forth.

"Welcome to this years intergalactic games!" boomed the speakers of the stadium and the crowd went wild.

"Our third game of the day will be between the Prince of all Saiyans and the Mistress of the dreaded Aracono King!" and once again the crowd went wild with cheers, shouts, and jeers.

"The rules of today's game are simple!" and on cue the ground rumbled as two black boxes rose up at either end of the field.

With a lurch of his stomach Vegeta felt Bulma's kai radiat from the box on the other end of the field.

"The prize for each contestant is within the boxes on each end of the field" once again on cue the blackness coating the outside of the boxes vanished, revealing the prize inside.

Vegeta's Saiyan eyes could see Bulma sitting in her box, looking utterly confused. Vegeta cursed under his breath, realizing Bulma couldn't see what was going on around her.

Despite being caked in blood her hair still fell perfectly around her face, like that of an angel. Much to Vegeta's relief her back didn't look as bloody and raw, the efforts of the female meuhvache seemed to have paid off.

"Ready…Set…Go!"

Vegeta cursed again, he had been so focused on Bulma he hadn't been listening to what he was supposed to do.

With a screech the Aracono mistress launched herself forward then dove into the sand, disappearing into the ground.

"What the fuck…" Vegeta spat, backing up. He reached out to find her life force but there were too many people in the crowd, his senses were overwhelmed and the speck of her life force disappeared among the millions in the stands.

His eyes darted back and forth, looking for any sign of movement in the sand.

His superior Saiyan eyes saw one tiny grain of sand shift at his feet but that was all the warning he received.

The Aracono mistress sprang out of the ground directly in front of him, clawed hands extended and fangs bared.

As she was coming toward him Vegeta's hands jumped to his defense, crossing over one another to form a small shield directly in front of her face.

Without hesitation the Aracono mistress bit down on his gloved hand, her fangs tearing through his flesh. Vegeta let out a disgruntled yell as he slammed his other fist into her skull. Squealing she let and retreated back into the dirt.

Sparing a glance toward Bulma, Vegeta froze. Her box had gotten smaller. Realizing the box was shrinking, Bulma had curled into a ball in the center of box. It wasn't a drastic size decrease but it was discomforting.

Vegeta was brought back to his sense when the aracono mistress leapt out the ground behind him, wrapped her arms around him and sank her teeth into his shoulder.

With a smirk he grabbed hold of her wrists and pushed off the ground with both feet. Tucking both feet underneath him he shifted his weight backward, placing the aracono mistress between himself and ground. When they were parallel to the ground he thrust his feet out before him and shoved his hips backwards, slamming the aracono mistress into the ground.

A thunderous roar rose up from the crowd but nothing was loud enough to disguise the squeal of surprise that came from Bulma.

The aracono mistress relinquished her hold on his shoulder and sunk back into the ground. Vegeta shot up and sought out Bulma's box. It had once again shrunk although Bulma wasn't in any immediate danger. Bulma was still curled up in a ball, although she was now visibly shaking. If she were to sit up now she would surely smack her head against the ceiling.

Glancing over his shoulder he took account of the aracono mistresses prize for the first time. It too had curled into a ball in the middle of the box and was shaking uncontrollably. Whatever it was, it was covered in black fur from head to toe with several limbs sticking out that were currently wrapped around itself. He noted that its box was the same size as Bulma's. Are they shrinking in direct relationship with one another? He wondered, his mind whirling as he tried to put the pieces together and discern the rules of this round.

A soft _crunch_ at his feet brought a smirk to his lips. This time when the aracono mistress sprang up Vegeta was ready. As her hideous face rose up to meet his he dealt a swift upper cut to her jaw, sending her flying backwards.

Glancing up he saw her prize box shrink yet again, causing the occupant to shake more violently than before. Throwing a glance over his shoulder at Bulma he was relieved to see that her box had remained the same.

"So that's it is it…" Vegeta chuckled to himself. Each blow a contestant suffered shrank the box that contained their prize, he mused, so even if the contestant survives an onslaught of blows their prize could be crushed anyway.

Looking around he found that the Aracono mistress had once again fled into the ground. Carefully Vegeta retreated to the wall of the field and waited. Closing his eyes and crouching down he slowly tuned out the audience, tuned out the loud speakers, listening to the silence of the field. He sat in drowned out silence, waiting for any trace of his prey.

Feeling the slightest shift in pressure beneath his right boot Vegeta let his signature smirk once again haunt his lips.

Opening his eyes he slammed his open hand into the ground, grabbed the Aracono mistress by her neck and pulled her out kicking and screaming. Slamming her against the wall he held her with one hand while he pulled the other back in a fist to end it.

Then his eyes meet her and he recognized the pain on her face, the look of defeat and failure. For just a moment his grip slackened and that's all it took.

The Aracono mistress raked a clawed hand across his face, leaving 4 deep gauges, narrowly missing his left eye.

Hearing Bulma's scream ignited the fire and hatred in him once again and with every once of power in his being he slammed his fist right through the Aracono mistresses face.

Dropping the corpse to the ground he heard the roar rise up from the crowd. He slowly tilted his head back and closed his eyes to let the victory cheers wash over him. They fed the adrenaline coursing through his veins and he felt like he could take on the world.

Looking down he noticed his white glove was now black with the mistress's blood, and red with some of his own.

Turning his gaze to the prize boxes he noticed they had returned to normal size. Both occupants were still curled into balls, unsure of how long the spacious reprieve would last.

"Congratulations to Prince Vegeta! You have won round one and both prize boxes are now yours!" boomed the loud speakers as the boxes once again descended into the ground.

Feeling the presence of the bastard he turned to face him. The bastard was standing within the double doors Vegeta had entered through, presumably to lead him back to his room. Raising his eyebrow Vegeta obliged. He was curious to see what would await him when he returned.

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Vegeta has come away from round 1 victorious, walking away with two prizes in his possession. What awaits Vegeta inside the compound? While he finally be allowed to reassure Bulma that her prince is there and keeping her safe? Find out next time on Dragonball Z!


	5. Mind Games Don't Play By the Rules

Vegeta has come away from round 1 victorious, walking away with two prizes in his possession. What awaits Vegeta inside the compound? While he finally be allowed to reassure Bulma that her prince is there and keeping her safe? Stay tuned!

**Mind Games Don't Play by the Rules**

Bulma was still curled up in a ball, afraid to move in fear of the box shrinking again. She had felt it move downwards again and it hadn't moved since but she wasn't about to take any chances.

Without warning one of the walls was removed and the light momentarily blinded her. Bulma looked out into the light and the blurry face of the nice creature came into view. Bulma stood up just enough so she didn't hit her head then stumbled out into the light. Her legs were still shaking and just as she was about to fall she felt two strong hands grab her arms and hold her up.

The creature guided her over to a bed and laid her down. Glancing around Bulma decided she must be in some type of infirmary. The creature gently flipped her onto her stomach and applied some sort of foam to her back. Her back began to tingle but it felt nice. She felt the creature, who she decided to name Mama Moo since it reminded her so much of a cow, lightly drape a blanket over her and in no time she was fast asleep.

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Vegeta once again found himself back in his room alone with his thoughts. They hadn't brought Bulma back yet but he could feel her somewhere in the compound. With a low growl Vegeta brought the heels of his palms to his temple and began massaging them. It was becoming harder and harder to focus on singular life forces in this hellhole.

With nothing better to do Vegeta glanced at his cot and decided if he should try to get some rest, but quickly dismissed the idea as he was filthy and needed to clean himself first. Wandering into the bathroom he lowered himself into the room temperature water contained in the wash bucket. It was by no means soothing but it felt better to be clean.

Returning to his room Vegeta stole a glance into Bulma's room and found it empty. With a grunt he tugged of his breastplate and boots, resigning to his cot where he slowly drifted off into a restless sleep.

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Bulma awoke refreshed but absolutely famished. She sleepily remembered that she hadn't eaten since she arrived. Seemingly reading her mind, Mama Moo appeared with a tray of food.

Sitting up, Bulma dug in with complete disregard for manners or politeness. She shoveled the food into her mouth and licked her fingers dry once she was done. Mama Moo returned for her tray and placed a pile of clothes in her lap.

Holding them up and examining them she found them to be a saiyan battle suit, complete with blue spandex, chest plate, gloves, and boots. _They look just like the ones Mom makes for Vegeta_ she thought to herself, running her hand over the fabric. Remembering that she had been completely naked since she arrived she look up at Mama Moo and blushed. The winged angel seemed to understand and left the room.

Bulma quickly slipped into the blue suit. It flattered her naturally perfect body in all the right places and left the more private parts to the imagination. Slipping on the boots she marveled at the breastplate she had been given. She hesitated a moment before slipping it over her head then she looked down at herself.

"I would make a damn good Saiyan" she giggled to herself, feeling completely renewed with food in her stomach and her mind well rested.

"Indeed you would" taunted a voice from the doorway. Without turning around Bulma looked over her shoulder and to her complete surprise found a woman standing there. Turning around to face the woman Bulma was stunned by her beauty.

Her humanoid form was leaning against the doorway, a smirk playing at her lips. Her skin was deep blue in color, with pin-straight jet-black hair perfectly framing her face. She was tall and slender, covered from neck to ankle in a blue velvet dress accompanied by the cutest black boots.

Her lips were as black as her hair and they formed the words, "Please come with me my dear, there is something I want to show you" and with that she picked herself up off the doorframe and strode out into the hall.

Nervously looking around for Mama Moo Bulma softly padded out into the hallway, and not spotting her caretaker anywhere she quickly followed after the mysterious woman.

The clicking of the woman's high-heeled boots echoed throughout the hallway, followed closely by the soft padding of Bulma's new boots. They traversed so many hallways and went up and down so many lifts Bulma was being to get dizzy. Any and all life forms they passed stopped and stood aside when they saw them coming. Finally they seemed to arrive at their destination.

Opening a door the woman ushered Bulma inside. Ever so delicately brushing the hair behind Bulma's right ear she leaned in and whispered, "are you watching closely?" before smirking, flipping a switch on the wall and disappearing out the door leaving Bulma in a stunned silence.

Bulma's fingers absent-mindedly traced the side of her face where the woman had brushed the hair away. "Am I watching closely?" Bulma whispered to herself as she turned to inspect the room. Letting out a surprised yelp and stumbling backwards she tried to take in the situation. One of the walls had disappeared and she was now looking into an adjacent room.

Taking a few deep breaths she reached out and flipped the switch next to the door. The room brightened and the wall reappeared so fast that if she had blinked she would have missed it. Flipping it again the lights dimmed and wall disappeared yet again. Cautiously moving forward she held out a tentative hand to avoid any more surprises as she slowly made her way to the wall. Upon reaching it her hand hit a solid material similar to that of glass.

"A one-way mirror," she muttered in surprise. Flicking the switch dimmed the lights in her room while the lights in the other room glowed brightly, allowing her to see into the other room without any occupant of the other room able to see her. She had little doubt that it didn't work both ways. With once last glance at the 'wall' she made her way back to the door and tested the handle. To her surprise it was open. Opening it just a crack and peeking out she saw the evil creature guarding the door. As quietly as she could she closed it again before sitting down against the wall. Pulling her knees to her chest she rested her chin and watched the other room closely.

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The prince was roused from his slumber by a presence sitting at the end of his bed. Without warning he sat straight up, his eyes pinning the intruder with his gaze. The woman sitting at the end of his bed didn't even flinch.

He recognized her immediately; she was none other than Queen Aranoco. If her blue skin and black hair didn't give her away than the air of regality around her certainly did.

"My Prince," she cooed, "I've been waiting for those handsome eyes to look upon me."

Saying nothing, Vegeta eyed her suspiciously. Although the king had quite the reputation for concubines he had never heard of the queen seeking a little something on the side. _What's she playing at_ he wondered, but she must certainly know something he didn't so he decided to play along.

Cocking his head to the side with a smirk he replied, "if I had known such a woman was awaiting my services I would have awoken much sooner". The queen could not hide the slight twitch of the corner of her mouth, evidence of a smirk being hidden away.

"Well if I had known the dark, ruthless Saiyan Prince would be so willing to service a woman such as myself I would have awoken you hours ago" she whispered, batting her eyelashes at him.

Vegeta said nothing, only watched her with a provocative look on his face.

The queen took his hand in hers and began to lead him out of the bedroom. On the way out the door Vegeta scooped up his boots and quickly slid them on. Now accustomed to being lead through the maze of hallways and lifts Vegeta merely followed, smirk still present on his features and his dark mind eager for what awaited him.

Finally the queen led him into a spacious bedroom, with a luxurious overlord sized bed that was quite an upgrade from his cot. With a coy giggle the queen turned to face him, biting her lip as she looked up at him through her lashes. With a low growl he buried his face in her neck, placing a hand on either side of her hips to pull her against him.

The queen tilted her head back on the tips of her hair danced along the top of Vegeta's hands. Wrapping his arms under her rear he picked her up and carried her over to the bed. Dropping her while simultaneously falling down with her they landed roughly on the bed.

"My Prince, I've heard many stories about your…conquests, but I must admit I am thrilled at the opportunity to experience them first hand" she whispered in his ear as her fingers reached up and tangled themselves in his hair.

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Bulma couldn't watch any more, she slammed the switch off and choking back tears she fled from the room. Her cow-like guard bellowed as she bolted down the hallway. The adrenaline coursing through her veins gave her feet wings as she sprinted down the hallway.

_That stupid fuck_, tears pouring from her eyes, _how could he be so close by and leave me to be tortured while he fucks around with stupid whores._

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"So tell me, m'lady, what made you entice a saiyan into your bedroom at this hour?" he moaned deep in his throat, flipping her over onto her stomach with one hand and pulling her against him with another.

A distant bellow in the hallway pulled Vegeta's gaze away from the queen and toward the door, but the sharp presence of her nails through the cuts on his face demanded his attention.

"I want you dead" the queen hissed as she pulled herself out of his grasp before retreating toward the wall. "I know what awaits you in round two, it will be your prize that determines your fate and I had yours watching our little show from the next room" she sneered as Vegeta slowly approached her.

"My king has come to claim the body of his favorite concubine, and take possession of his bastard son. Think twice Saiyan, my corpse would not bode well for your survival" she hissed as she shrank into the corner of the room, retreating from Vegeta's enraged form.

With a snarl Vegeta shot his hands forward and wrapped his fingers around the queen neck, throttling the life from her weak body.

"Your prize will leave you to die! I have ensured it" she spat in Vegeta's face.

He tightened his grip around her neck and twisted sideways with a satisfying _snap_. Her body fell limp in his arms and he dropped her body unceremoniously onto the bed.

What seemed like a simple game of cat and mouse had in fact been a trap; somehow that stupid woman had tricked Bulma somehow. _That woman is too foolish to realize a lie when she hears one_, he snarled as the queen's trickery came alive in his mind.

Exiting the room without so much as shutting the door Vegeta reached out for Bulma's kai. With a snarl he realized it was hopeless, the compound was full to bursting with too many life forms and he couldn't focus.

Another bellow reverberated throughout the hallway and Vegeta had his heading. Pushing through the gathering crowd he made his way toward the source. Finally breaking free from the crowd he found himself facing a surprising scene.

The bastard was attempting to grab a hold of Bulma who was squirming and flailing every which way. When it finally wrapped its arms around her she bit down on its hand, causing it to fling her away. Stumbling she fell into Vegeta's arms.

Bulma's blue eyes met Vegeta's black ones and his nose was assailed with the smell of tears. Scrunching his face in disgust he placed her on her feet.

Without warning she slapped him across the face. Vegeta watched in stunned silence as Bulma's eyes began to water and her lips began to quiver.

"Go back to your whore" she spat in his face and she turned back to face the muehvache. She wound up, preparing to punch it right in it's snout but it caught her hand with ease and yanked her toward it. Crushing her in its grip the muehvache picked her up and began carrying her away. Bulma continued to kick and scream but Vegeta just watched, his anger boiling inside him.

With a vengeance in his eyes and a red mark coming to life on his cheek he turned on his heel and marched in the opposite direction.

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Bulma and Vegeta are reunited at last, but the reunion is bitter sweet. Can Vegeta overcome his pride or will he leave Bulma to die? Find out next time on Dragonball Z!


	6. A Turn of the Screw

Bulma and Vegeta were reunited at last, but the reunion was bitter sweet. Can Vegeta overcome his pride or will he leave Bulma to die? Stay tuned!

**A Turn of the Screw**

Vegeta angrily stormed the hallways of the compound, violently punching anything that strayed too close. _That wretched human_, he fumed, _how dare she raise a hand against me_. He continued taking random turns down dark corridors and descending to unknown depths. In his rage his pride got the better of him and the queen's treachery faded into the recesses of his mind.

Suddenly Vegeta became aware of his footsteps echoing through the hallway. Glancing around he had clearly wandered far away from the bulk of the life forms in the compound, but he sensed he was not alone. Never breaking his stride he continued onward, his eyes shifting wearily from door to door. Turning the corner at the end of the hall Vegeta realized too late that he run into a dead end. Whipping around he came face to face with the dreaded King Aracono. Eyes narrowing in surprise Vegeta took a step back, mouth twitching as he snarled.

The king's blood red eyes glared down at him menacingly as a low rumble from his chest reverberated through the hallway. A muscular trunk of an arm shot out without warning and seized Vegeta by the throat. Effortless picking Vegeta off the ground the king hurled him down the remainder of the hallway.

Vegeta bounced off the floor with a sickening _crunch_ of his ribs before slamming into the wall. Vegeta could only lay twitching as the heavy footsteps slowly approached. Once again being effortlessly plucked off the floor the king slammed him into the wall and held him there, his enormous hand covering the entirety of Vegeta's chest.

"It seems you have robbed me of my queen and my favorite mistress" the king sneered in Vegeta's face. As the king pressed him farther into the wall Vegeta couldn't suppress the groan that escaped his throat. Around him the wall cracked and crumbled, giving way as the king pushed him further back into the wall.

Barely having room to cough up the blood now leaking from his mouth Vegeta could only smirk darkly and mutter, "your queen was quite the worthless wench."

A barely audible _zap_ sounded from the device around Vegeta's neck and the king released Vegeta who dropped to the floor with a _thud_.

"How unfortunate, I cannot kill you for your life belongs to the games. But rest assured that I will arrange a contestant for you in the arena that will grind your bones to powder and pound your organs into jelly" the king growled with a chuckle. Turning, the king abandoned Vegeta in the rubble as he disappeared down the hallway.

With a chuckle of his own Vegeta pushed himself into a sitting position, his arms quivering with effort. Disgusted he spat the blood in his mouth off to the side and let his head fall back with a soft _smack_ against the wall.

"Stupid fucker" he hissed through clenched teeth as every breath sent tremors of pain surging through his body.

Vegeta paid no regard to the passage of time as he sat broken and bruised at the end of the hallway, and so he couldn't discern with any certainty how look it took the pair of muehvaches to appear with a stretcher. He had never seen these two before and they were neither gentle nor harsh. They laid the stretcher on the floor beside him and he collapsed onto it. Strapping him down securely they hoisted the stretcher off the ground and carried it between them through the hallway.

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On the other side of the compound Bulma continued to thrash violently in her captor's arms. It had carried her across the entire compound before it savagely tossed her in a room. Landing on her back Bulma felt herself spasm in pain. Instantly arching her back and rolling onto her stomach she took several gulps of air before she recovered. Grabbing the edge of a nearby object she hauled herself to her feet.

The creature had left, locking the door behind it and once again Bulma was alone. Taking stock of the room she found a small bed, a computer screen and a small bathroom. Looking at her reflection in the excuse of a mirror she found in the bathroom she almost became sick at the sight of her own hair. It was still matted in blood and her thrashing had worked it into a tizzy.

Submerging her head in a nearby water bucket she scrubbed her scalp. She pulled herself out long enough to take a few gulps of air before submerging her head once again, this time focusing on working the mattes out of her hair. Pulling herself out of the water and flipping her hair back she furiously worked her fingers through her hair repeated until she was satisfied it could no longer be considered a crime scene.

Emerging from the bathroom seeking a towel she instead found a furry intruder. Letting out a scream she scrambled back into the bathroom and slammed the door. She braced herself against the door, preparing for an onslaught that never came. Curiosity getting the best of her she opened the door just wide enough for her to peer out into the room.

Bulma couldn't see the intruder anymore but the clattering of the bed clued her in that it was still in the room. Slowly opening the door Bulma crouched down, hoping to steal a glimpse under the bed. True enough she found her intruder curled in a ball and shaking violently under the bed. That thing was afraid of _her_.

Lowering herself into a sitting position she decided to wait until the creature came out on it's own. Seconds ticked by but the creature had yet to cease it's violent shaking and Bulma found her self becoming increasingly agitated.

"Come on out! It's not like I'm going to hurt you," she almost shouted, saying it with far more intensity than she meant. The creature shrank as small as it possibly could beneath the bed; it's violent shaking increasing.

With a sigh Bulma realized this wasn't going to work. Hoisting herself up she strode over to the bed frame and flipped it onto its side. The creature didn't seem to notice and didn't move so Bulma began to examine it for afar.

Short black fur covered its whole body, including its 4 legs and 4 arms that were currently wrapped around itself. Bulma could see 6 eyes squeezed shut, 3 and each side of the face ascending diagonally upwards. Two furry fangs jutted out from above its mouth, much like those of a spider. With a gentle nudge of her foot the creature opened it's beady little blood red eyes and looked at her.

Tilting its head from side to side it slowly sat up, although it's arms didn't surrender their protective positions wrapped around its body.

"Hey there, I'm Bulma," she said softly, not wanting to give the poor thing a heart attack.

It blinked at her, as if it was trying to comprehend her words. With a sigh and a bow of her head she turned and headed back in the direction of the bathroom.

"I don't have a name. I am just called Bastard Child Aracono. I was separated from my mother, Mistress Aracono, and I have not seen her since." It said softly, closing its eyes and letting two of its arms wrap around its face.

Bulma just stood there dumbfounded, unsure of what to do. A sharp beep from a screen by the door caught her attention. Turning away from the bastard child shaking on the floor she approached the screen. It was full of writing in some alien language Bulma could not read but it gave Bulma an idea.

Grabbing the sides of the screen she roughly pried it from the wall and set it down on the floor. Following the wiring that extended from the screen back into a hollow section of the wall she cursed as she realized the computer must be somewhere else in the complex.

"If I could only get my hands on a motherboard and a hard drive" she muttered to herself as she replaced the screen.

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After a long and bumpy ride through the complex Vegeta finally arrived at the infirmary. Every fiber in Vegeta's body convulsed in pain as the muehvaches rolled him off the stretched and onto the bed. Laying there breathless another muehvache approached him; it was female but not the same female as before, this one had no emotion in it's cold black eyes.

It produced a pill from a bottle on the counter and held it over his mouth, gesturing for him to swallow it. Firmly setting his jaw Vegeta turned his head and ignored it.

The muehvache placed its hand under his chin and with two fingers found his jaw muscles and squeezed, prying his mouth open. After dropping the pill in his mouth it placed it's hand over his lips, not letting him spit it out.

Vegeta was prepared to play the long and tedious waiting game when a horrible bitterness engulfed his mouth. Nearly choking he swallowed, nearly puking as it went down. The muehvache removed its hand and Vegeta took in several gulps of air. As he lay there, using every ounce of his will not to puke, the muehvache was busy restraining his limbs in the same way they had restrained Bulma when she first arrived.

Without warning Vegeta felt his muscles contract in unison as pain erupted from his chest. Letting out a furious yell, veins bulging out of his neck, Vegeta's ribs began snapping themselves painfully back into place. Tilting his chin into his neck Vegeta caught a glimpse of his ribs bulging and shifting beneath his skin, but soon enough the pain had him furiously yelling death threats and curses at anyone and anything that came to mind.

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Bulma paced the room, examining every nook and cranny looking for some sort of way out or even better, access to any sort of electronic device. She had found a switch by the door that triggered a one-way mirror along one wall, although there was red substance coating most of it on the other side. It made her shiver and the skin on her back crawl so she left the switch off.

The bastard child just sat in the corner, shaking and crying. Bulma had given up trying to comfort him, and he still gave her the heebie-jeebies. After replacing the bed to its upright position she plopped down and despite all the thoughts whirling through her mind she quickly dozed off.

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After what seemed like hours the pain finally died away, but Vegeta couldn't be sure how much time had truly passed. His breathing was still ragged and rough when the muehvache reappeared in his field of vision and a growl tore from his throat as he bared his teeth.

Ignoring him the beast grabbed his hand, the one the mistress had bitten, and examined it. When it untied his wrist and held it up to the light Vegeta noticed for the first time that the bite was infected. Each hole in his flesh where the mistress's fangs had sunken in was leaking greenish black pus that smelled putrid. The area around the wound had turned black and the veins in his hand were black as death.

"Bitch didn't even buy me a drink," he muttered under his breath, turning his eyes away from his infected hand. The muehvache replaced his hand on the table and strapped it down. Then it turned its attention to Vegeta's face. A prodding finger reminded him he had four deep gouges on the side of his face. Bulma's slap had draw his attention to his other cheek, and he had never given the scratch a second thought.

If the wound on his face was anything like his hand he was truly a horrific sight to behold. The muehvache disappeared momentarily but was soon back with a syringe looking device. Vegeta set his jaw and tightened his muscles, he had been bitten by an arachnoid before and he knew how bad this one would hurt.

With a pinch the antidote was injected into each wound in his hand as well as the four on his face. Vegeta's muscles contracted of his own accord, knowing the pain was coming. Then, like a train you see coming at you in a dark tunnel, it hit him. A gut wrenching burning lit each wound and set fire to the blood in his veins. His vision blurred and he felt his heart beat frantically, trying to quench the fire. He felt the inferno race through every vein and capillary in his body, banishing the pain receptors in his nervous system to the deepest fiery pit of Hell.

With a scream of anguish his mind drifted into a tormented unconsciousness.

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The scream that echoed through the hallways awoke Bulma from her slumber. Bolting upright she tried to hear it again but it was gone. For the briefest moment fear clenched her heart as Vegeta crossed her mind, but an image of him atop that woman shattered her momentary concern.

Looking around she found the bastard child curled up in the corner, apparently sleeping. Then the softest _click_ brought Bulma's attention to the door. Flinging the covers off she quickly retreated from the bed, standing next to the bastard child in the corner. Bulma watched silently as the door slowly opened, until the big soft face of Mama Moo became visible.

With a squeal of delight Bulma rushed across the room and wrapped her arms around the loveable beast. Mama Moo gently hugged her back before softly pushing Bulma away. Mama Moo handed Bulma a fresh suit of Saiyan armor and, to Bulma's surprise, some soap. With another squeal Bulma snatched up the bundle of goodies before skipping into the bathroom.

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When Vegeta opened his eyes again the room was spinning. With a grunt he left his eyes shut, his mind probing the damage done to his body. The fire in his veins had died out but they still felt singed. His ribs seemed to be back in their proper places but each breath still hurt and he knew he would be sore for a while. With a twitch of his injured cheek he assessed that the wounds were cured of the poison and seemed to be scabbing over. A similar twitch of his hand confirmed the same was true there as well.

A scuffling in the room brought his attention back to the world around him. Slowly opening his eyes he found a lizard like creature staring down at him. It's reptilian head and scaly skin was coated in what smelled like blood but was bright blue.

"It'sss too bad thisss one sssurvived. It would have made a great ssspeciman" it hissed through it's rounded jaw and pointed teeth. With a chuckle its head disappeared from view but Vegeta could feel his bonds loosening.

"Waittt" another voice hissed. And yet another reptilian head appeared in front of him. It's clawed and scaly fingers reached down to his neck and a short sequence of beeps from his collar sounded in his ear. "Continueee" the second reptile hissed, stepping away from Vegeta.

Once Vegeta felt his last bond come free he tightened his muscles and attempted to spring out of the bed. To his dismay he found he couldn't move. With a growl he tried to move his limbs but nothing other than his head would obey.

A chuckle from the second reptilian made his skin crawl and his face contort in anger. "Try to move all you want, your inhibitor his intercepting the sssignalsss from your brain as they travel along your neuronsss. You cannot moveee" it hissed with a chuckle as it's long reptilian tongue slithered through it's teeth between words.

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Now that she had thoroughly scrubbed and cleaned herself Bulma felt like a human being again. As she slipped on her clean set of saiyan armor and adjusted the chest plate she came out of the bathroom to find Mama Moo and the bastard child waiting for her. They both turned and walked out the door, Mama Moo leading the way, and Bulma could do nothing but follow.

Once again Bulma found herself overwhelmed by the sheer volume of the building they were in. She followed Mama Moo closely through the maze of corridors and lifts, thankful for Mama Moo's guidance.

Finally they arrived at their destination, a large circular room with no apparent purpose. In the center a circle screen displayed more alien words with a picture of her face and that of the bastard child.

Turning to Mama Moo she found sadness in the creatures eyes. Mama Moo placed her large hands on Bulma's shoulders and touched her nose to Bulma's forehead.

Feeling the warmth of Mama Moo's breath somehow put Bulma at ease. Then the warmth was gone and so was Mama Moo.

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Vegeta's lips twitched and he snarled as the reptiles roughly picked him up from the bed and laid him in a long, metal cage. The cage was just long enough for him to lie in, and when they closed the lid it was just wide enough for him to breath in.

Sensing the lizard reach though the bars of his cage he once again heard the sequence of beeps that had immobilized him. Finally free Vegeta began thrashing madly, filled with rage. The cage was too small and the metal too thick for him to break. He couldn't even bend his elbows all the way. The reptiles began pushed the cage, and the cart it was on, out the door and through the hallways.

With no way of breaking free and his body still weak from his trip to the infirmary, Vegeta could only lay still and mentally prepare for whatever may lie ahead.

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With Vegeta severely injured and trapped in a cage it seems it's Bulma's turn this round. How will her Earthly physique hold up against these alien warriors? Find out next time on Dragonball Z!


	7. Ding, Round 2

With Vegeta severely injured and trapped in a cage it seems it's Bulma's turn this round. How will her Earthly physique hold up against these alien warriors? Stay tuned!

**Ding, Round 2**

Even after thoroughly examining the room twice Bulma could find no means of escape. The bastard child had taken to the screens in the middle of the room that were showing some show where a bunch if fighters were battling it out.

Just as Bulma had taken to inspecting the large double doors on the opposite side of the room for the third time a small metallic robot seemingly appeared out of nowhere.

"Why hello there!" It chirped as it whirled around the room over to Bulma. "Welcome to Meuhvachidor! And good luck on your upcoming challenge!" it chirped as it unlocked the double doors, allowing them to swing open.

For a moment Bulma was blinded by the sudden contrast in lighting, but her eyes quickly adjusted and she could make out a large arena filled to the brim with all matter of alien life. The arena reminded her of the coliseum in Rome and in her Saiyan armor she felt like a gladiator.

The ground before her was made of compact dirt, stretching out before her in all directions. She took a few tentative steps forward when a loud _slam_ informed her that the doors had shut behind her, blocking any retreat. A quick scan of her surroundings indicated that the arena was long and elliptical, but as she turned her gaze toward her right her eyes locked onto a humanoid looking figure in the middle of the arena.

Whipping around to face her would-be attacker she raised her hands to ward off an attack she was sure would follow, but the figure never moved. Lowering her arms Bulma took a few tentative steps forward, her eyebrow raised in confusion. As she inched closer she noticed the figure was on its knees with its arms extended to either side, bound by chains. The chains were attached to large circular weights half buried in the dirt.

Bulma froze in her steps, unsure how to proceed. Could this be a fearsome warrior chained so it would not tear her to pieces immediately, or was it another prisoner bound so that they could be torn to pieces by some unseen beast? Swallowing her fear and gathering her courage Bulma ran toward the figure, ready to free them should they be friendly or flee should they be a monster.

As she drew closer she felt fear creep up her spine as she realized the figure still hadn't moved, not even an inch. It was on it's knees, it's torso bent over with it's head hanging forward and it's short mane of flame red hair in disarray. It's well toned and muscular arms flowed into enormous shoulders covered in scars.

As Bulma approached it lifted it's head and it's blood red eyes locked onto hers and she felt her blood turn to ice. She could feel panic shoot through her spine, willing her legs to turn and run but she could not move. She tried to think, to blink, to move but muscles were no longer her own. She felt the blood red eyes boring a hole through her mind and into her soul.

"Don't look it in the eyes!" shouted the bastard child as he flung himself into Bulma, freeing her from her trance and knocking her from her feet. As her senses returned Bulma noticed a black shadow on the ground before her. Terror filled her as she flung herself away from an unseen foe. As she staggered to her feet she cast her gaze upwards and once again was struck motionless.

Above her hung a cage, small and short, containing the scariest monster in the entire universe, _her monster_.

Her eyes locked with Vegeta and all the anger she had felt melted away as her heart filled with dread. One side of his face was oozing blood and every vein in his face was black and bulging. Even the veins in his eyes where stained black with death as those stone cold coal eyes looked at her. The ragged sound of him desperately sucking in each gulp of air filled her ears and she could see the sheen of his effort on his forehead. As her eyes moved down she cried out in horror as the black and purple oozing bruise that remained of Vegeta's chest caught her eye. Even as she tried to avert her eyes she caught sight of his arm, the veins all the way up to his shoulder were black, and his hand was all but burnt black.

Without a word her eyes returned to his and she placed a hand over her heart as if trying to hold it so it wouldn't fall from her chest.

"Look out!" screamed the bastard as Bulma's vision blurred and she felt herself lifted from the ground and flung backward. As her back slammed against the arena wall she felt the white-hot pain erupt from her back as she let out a blood-curdling scream. Before her the world erupted in flames of white as millions of needles plunged themselves into her mind, drilling deeper as the pain from her back spread all over her body.

Bulma could hear noise but she could no longer understand what the words were saying. As the ringing in her ears ebbed and the world slowly melted out of the fog before her eyes she could feel someone tugging on her arm. "We must keep moving!" she finally understood. Without thinking she could feel herself hauling herself to feet before stumbling forward on shaky legs.

As Bulma stumbled forward the wall behind her erupted in chunks of stone and clouds of dust. Once again without thinking she could feel her legs running beneath her, dodging eruptions of dirt and cutting through thick clouds of dust. As she looked back she could see the flame red figure, standing, using his chains to swing the large weights around over his head before hurling them toward her.

Realizing this Bulma took a sharp turn left and ran in the opposite direction, putting distance between them instead of running parallel to him. As she ran she heard a furious roar from behind her as the figure could no longer reach her with his ball and chain.

Out of breath Bulma stopped and looked back, glad to see the bastard child had been following closely behind her. She quickly grabbed him and pulled him to her chest, stroking his fuzzy head in an attempt to reassure him._This will be a game of brain versus brawn_, she thought to herself as she observed the beast glaring at her with its blood red eyes but she forced herself to look away.

She quickly took stock of her assets. The ground was hard and compact but it shot up thick clouds of dust when struck with the beast's fierce attacks. The walls were far too high to climb, even with assistance from the bastard child. The crowd was clearly enjoying the spectacle and Bulma knew they would be of no help to her. The bastard child was scared and weak, with no armor to protect his brittle skin. With pleading eyes she gazed up at Vegeta, but he was clearly fighting to stay conscious. His stone cold eyes were glazed over with a film of horrible pain and her heart sank to her heels as she realized he could never help her, it was taking all his strength to help himself.

Bulma was pulled from her thoughts as she watched in horror as one of the weights came out of nowhere and rammed into Vegeta's cage, sending him soaring through the air. But just as he was about to slam into the arena wall the chain holding the chain pulled taut and swung the cage back toward the center of the arena where the beast waited.

Bulma realized in horror that the beast would kill Vegeta if she did not distract him. Turning her attention back to the beast she could see him whipping both his chains over and around his head, swinging both weights in great circles around him as it awaited the return of its new punching bag.

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Vegeta could fell himself falling, falling through the floor of the cage and through the floor of the arena, falling through the planet itself. The toxin may have been reduced from his lethal dosage but it still coursed through his veins and left a trail of burning pain as it flowed through him.

He couldn't think. He couldn't feel the cage beneath his feet, or the clothes on his skin, all he could feel was the pain surging through his body. For a brief moment the pain had subsided, and the vision of an angel with teal blue hair had appeared in the distance, but the brief ray of relief quickly faded and he was plunged back into darkness.

Without warning the pain in his body exploded violently and his vision was blurred by a red haze. After a few blinks Vegeta faintly wondered if it was his blood but his thoughts were becoming hard to grasp and soon they thought slipped away and he once again found himself in the vengeful embrace of mind numbing, burning pain.

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Bulma ran as quickly as she her feet could carry her across the dirt, torpedoing her directly toward the red-eyed monster. The monster paid her no attention as he watched his punching bag make its return swing. Bulma watched a forked black tongue escape from the monsters lips as it watched the blood drip from Vegeta's cage.

Rage fueled Bulma's adrenaline powered muscles as she barreled toward the monster. Just as she reached the limit of the monsters reach she leapt into the air, narrowly missing the first weight as it surged under her feet. As she sprinted forward she flung herself to the ground as the second weight went whizzing just over her head. Relentlessly she jumped to her feet and kept running.

The monster now directed all his attention toward Bulma as it brought both weights around, intent on killing her. As Bulma saw the weights emerge in her peripheral vision she launched herself forward, flattening her body to be parallel with ground before she twisting between the two weights as they whirled by. With a roar the monster brought his arms to his side then back then arced them over his head as he plunged the weights down toward Bulma. Without thinking Bulma frantically rolled herself sideways but she didn't roll far enough as the weights came crashing down.

Bulma's right hand was desperately trying to pull itself to rejoin the rest of her body as she rolled but as the weights came crashing down it didn't escape in time. Horrific pain shot through Bulma's arm and rammed into Bulma's brain like an angry bull. Bulma shrieked as she desperately tried to pry her arm free from beneath the weight but her feeble strength couldn't budge the weight from her crushed hand. As she frantically flung her body against the weight she froze in fear as a tall dark shadow loomed over her.

Stiffening her lower lip she looked up at the beast standing before her. With a devilish grin it placed it raised it's foot and with a tap of its toe the weight rolled away with ease. Snatching her crushed and bloody hand Bulma boldly looked the monster square in the eye and snarled – _like Vegeta would do in the face of danger_. As the monster approached to wipe the grin off Bulma's face the ground behind it exploded in a cloud of dirt as the bastard child launched himself out from the ground and sank his venomous fangs into the monster's thick neck. The monster roared and tried to rip the bastard child off its back but it was restrained by it's own chains and its arms could not reach.

Bulma clutched her hand to her chest as she watched the monster fall to its knees before her. As she looked him in the eye she felt her heart thud with regret as the blood red eyes gazed up at her with sadness. The monster turned its head to gaze upward, and as Bulma followed its gaze she realized another cage hung above the arena. This cage contained a small shaking child, it's mane of flame red hair clinging to its tear stricken face.

The monster let out a pitiful roar and reached its arm upward toward the cage as the child reached its arm outward but it was too late, the monster fell into the dirt as the blackness of death corroded its veins and seeped into its pores.

The bastard child did not release his hold from the monster until he was satisfied his venom had ended its life. Once he was satisfied he slowly removed his fangs and pushed himself to his feet. Once he spied Bulma's crushed hand he fell to the ground before her and apologized profusely for not killing the monster soon enough.

But Bulma hardly heard him, her eyes were still gazing sadly at the small child who clearly had just lost a parent. But a dull _thud_ snapped Bulma from her trance as she realized that Vegeta's cage had been released and had fallen to the ground. Ignoring the pain coursing from her back and surging from her hand she got up and ran to him.

As she fell to her knees beside his cage she gasped in horror at the large gash in his head that now bleed black. Fumbling with the lock she couldn't contain the whimper that escaped, as her shaking left hand could not unlock the cage on its own.

Slowly and without a sound the bastard child approached and calmly unlatched the cage and pulled back the crushed metal that contained Vegeta.

Bulma wiped her eyes with her good hand and forced herself to take a few steady breaths. Grabbing the side of the cage with her left hand she glanced at the bastard child and wordlessly he bent and grabbed the other side of the cage. Together they lifted Vegeta in his impromptu stretcher and carried him from the arena and back through the double doors from which they had come.

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As Vegeta slowly opened his eyes his groggy mind realized he was gazing up at the ceiling of the infirmary, where he had been not so long ago. Sensing Bulma by his side he turned his head ever so slightly so that he could glare at her.

The hate burning in his heart was stunned into submission upon the sight of her mangled appearance. Her face was caked in dirt and blood, her hair dirty and knotted, her hand wrapped in blood soaked linen, and her body adorned in a saiyan battle suit. She was sitting in a chair beside his bed, her head resting on her good hand as she dozed lightly.

Vegeta tried to call the anger and hate he had felt when she dared raise her hand to strike him, but he could not find the strength. The pain that had blinded and bound him was now dull and he could once again grasp his thoughts. A voice over the intercom was announcing the surprise victory of a prize over a contender. _No_, he thought, _impossible_.

Slowly he began to sense another life form on his other side and he turned his head ever so slightly to investigate. On a bed adjacent to his lay the bastard son of King Aracono, curled into a ball and fast asleep. But still his senses tingled with the presence of an unknown life. Past the shape of the bastard child Vegeta could just barely see the tip of another bed, but it was impossible to tell what it contained.

With a grunt Vegeta forced his sore and pained muscles into submission as he painstakingly moved himself into a sitting position. With a moan Bulma stirred and Vegeta found himself holding his breath. Silently he watched her sit up and rub her eyes with her good hand as she let out a yawn.

Sleepy eyed she gazed up at him and for a moment her eyebrows furrowed in confusion. Then realization pronounced itself in her features as her eyesbrows shot upwards, her eyes opened wide, and her mouth curled upwards into a smile as she gasped in surprise. With a burst of excitement she flung herself upon his chest causing Vegeta to let out a roar of pain as his brain pounded against his skull threatening to break it in two.

With another gasp Bulma yanked herself away, holding her hands in the air as her face contorted with worry. Vegeta growled as he clenched his fists and waited for the pain to subside. Once he recovered his composure he turned to look at the woman who dare touch him a second time.

"Oh Vegeta I'm so sorry!" she squealed as she clutched the front of her armor with her good hand while the other hung limply at her side.

Ignoring her Vegeta prepared to stand when the door burst open and the horrible face of the meuhvache strode through the door. With a snarl Vegeta leapt from the bed, only to be overcome with a gut wrenching pain that turned his legs to liquid beneath him and once again he felt himself falling.

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Bulma watched in horror as Vegeta tried in vain to stand before he toppled to the ground. She heard his name escape her lips and felt herself attempt to reach over the bed and catch him. She watched helplessly as the image of Vegeta suddenly receded as she was yanked away by her tormentor.

Screaming and kicking she fought against her captor with all her might but when it grabbed her already crushed hand in it's fingers and squeezed she was reduced to a sobbing pathetic captive as it hauled her away.

She reached for Vegeta as it yanked her past but her tears blurred her vision and her hand smacked painfully against the edge of the metal bed.

The bastard child had leapt to its feet but Bulma watched helplessly as the Meuhvache slammed the door in its face and proceeded to drag Bulma away.

"VEGETA!" Bulma heard herself scream before a flame red fist reduced her consciousness to blackness.

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Ding ding, round two is concluded and it seems our heros are a little worse for wear. Finally reunited for the briefest moment will Vegeta be able to salvage his strength in time to save Bulma, or will this be Vegeta's final chaper? Find out next time on Dragon Ball Z!


	8. Put Your Game Face On

College is hard! Anyway, here's the next chapter :)

**Put Your Game Face On**

_Vitals 97 percent…vitals 98 percent…vitals 99 percent…vitals 100 percent…vitals restored…initiating reboot sequence…_

Bulma wasn't quite sure when the feeling returned to her limbs but at first she hardly felt them and she almost wasn't convinced they were still attached. Then slowly she felt the painful tingle, pinching her all over, like a colony of angry ants, as if to reassure her of their existence. Once her limbs were again at peace she gradually became aware of the floating sensation that enveloped her body. To open her eyes felt as though she had flung open dusty curtains and for a moment everything blurred. As she blinked the image before her became sharper, until she could make out the faint metallic outline over her mouth and nose.

As she watched the bubbles rise before her eyes she understood that she was in a healing tank, the very same kind that had saved Goku and Vegeta in the past. Slowly the room beyond came into focus, and Bulma found herself gazing lazily toward two lizard-like beings that were peering at her and talking amongst themselves. The liquid around her distorted their voices, making them sound distant and menacing.

"Sssuch a weak thing" one hissed, its forked tongue licking at the air in front of its snout, "to think it will be the death of the sssayian prince."

"Heee is not dead yettt" the other spat, "ittt would be a shameee if the last saiyan were to dieee. Such a noble raceee". _They don't know about Goku_ Bulma mused, _he's probably speeding to rescue us right now_. Bulma had no doubt that Goku could take on the entire compound of warriors, especially with Vegeta at his side.

Bulma was pulled away from her thoughts as she became aware of a third presence before her tank. Allowing her eyes to descend she found herself gazing down at the child from the cage. It's flame red hair was now perfectly straight and it's beady red eyes glared at her menacingly.

"She is awake" the child announced, never taking it's gaze from her.

"Ssso ssshe isss" the first lizard hissed.

Bulma patiently waited as the lizard typed a command into the side of the tank. With a _gurgle_ the liquid began to drain and with a _whoosh_ air began to take it's place. Bulma could feel herself drifting downward with the current, and for a moment she felt as though she might wash down the drain, as smooth as liquid and as small as a water drop. But then her feet met the floor and it held her firm. She let out a tiny whimper as she watched the last of the liquid flee through the drain, leaving her behind.

Around Bulma everything became a blur as the lizards scooped her up and carried her to a nearby bed. They dropped her hastily on the bed before sauntering out the door, hissing to each other as they went.

Then she was alone; alone with the child whose hair and heart were aflame. Although Bulma could now feel her extremities she could not find the strength to move, to run, to flee. And from the corner of her eye she watched as the child loomed over her, glaring at her, hating her. _Is this the end of Bulma Briefs?_ she thought to herself, choking on tears that never made it to her eyes.

But just as the child was about to reach her bedside the bastard Aracono child appeared, stepping between them like a guardian angel steps before death. He put a hairy arm on her wet hair and gave her a pat. Contented that he would watch over her she fell into a deep sleep.

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Vegeta angrily paced his room, his steps measured and precise, and his breaths long and deep. His saiyan blood had revitalized his muscles and healed his wounds. The deep gashes that had cut through the sharp features of his face had now faded to mere scratches. The infection that had tried to claim his hand and arm now hardly left a trace. The puncture wounds on his neck had faded long ago, hardly noticed in the chaos of recent events.

When Vegeta first noticed the wound he had laughed, a deep evil laugh. It was well known that Arcnoid, the race to which the king's mistress belonged, would lose their venom after bearing a child. _Her own brat was her demise_, he had thought smugly to himself. After bearing her child her venom had slowly dissipated away, until all she had left was what she sank into his hand. If she had never bore the child then she would have had enough venom for a second bite, and then the bite to his neck would have killed him. _But if she never bore the brat then she would never have been here in the first place_, he mused, _there must always be a prize_.

He felt his kai attempting to wander, trying to find Bulma amidst the countless other beings here, but he forced it back. _I need every ounce of strength if I'm to escape here alive_, he thought calmly. After they had taken Bulma he had allowed the small amount of his kai that could escape the confines of his kai inhibitor to follow her, through the maze of halls and elevators until he felt her feeble life force slowly begin to recover. Whatever they were doing to her, they were at least healing her.

For the first time since he encountered the king in the hallway he could think clearly again. He had been through hell and back, and that was only round 2.

"No one ever wins this game" Freeza sneered in the back of his mind, "this is where heros and evil villains alike come to die. For once you succumb to the weakness of love and passion, you're as good as dead."

Vegeta growled as he banished the memory from his mind and he felt his stomach growl in response. With a _click_ of his teeth he strode on, continuing his endless journey from one side of the room to another.

_They will all feel my merciless wrath before the end_.

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Bulma awoke in a cold sweat, panting heavily and almost in tears. She flung back her sheets and slipped her feet into the fuzzy pink slippers her mother had given her for Christmas the year before.

Grabbing a robe she wrapped it around herself as she ran down the hall, tears threatening to fall from her eyes. The dogs let out a startled yelp as she burst into her parents room.

"Bulma dear, what's wrong honey?" her mom said sleepily, not even raising her head.

"Oh mom, I had the worst nightmare. Daddy please, can I stay her for a little bit" she whimpered, tears finally falling from her eyes, as water falls freely from a broken dam.

"Of course dear, come here" her father called, his words fading as they drew nearer to her.

Bulma hurried toward her parent's bed, but to her dismay the bed seemed to move even further away. Breaking into a sprint she felt herself crying uncontrollably, her legs threatened to collapse beneath her. But no matter how hard she ran the bed continued to get further and further away.

Without warning Bulma felt a snap at her heels and as she turned she saw her dogs had become snarling monsters that were now chasing after her.

Sobbing she desperately tried to run, to reach the safety of her parents, to run away from the monstrous danger that was pursing her. Looking up she could no longer see her parents or their bed; only darkness lay ahead of her. With a wail of anguish Bulma collapsed and in an instant the dogs were upon her, tearing at her flesh and breaking her bones.

With a scream Bulma awoke, in a cold sweat breathing heavily and almost in tears. But instead of waking up in her bed she found herself back on the wretched alien planet. The bed was hard and uncomfortable, the room was cold and uninviting, and this whole planet was out to get her.

Wailing loudly Bulma collapsed back into bed. "Mommy, daddy, please help me" she sobbed, choking on tears. "I just want to go home, please, I just want to go home" she cried out in anguish.

The small hairy face of the Aracono bastard appeared above her, all of his eyes blinking sleepily at her. "It will be alright" he said quietly, rubbing the sleep from his eyes.

"No it won't" she wailed, "I'm going to die here. I want to go home!"

"Bulma please-" he stammered, but she cut him off

"You don't understand! I'm Bulma Briefs! My daddy is a great man, my mom is a loving woman and I am their brilliant daughter. I shouldn't be here" she sobbed between labored breaths.

"No, I don't understand" he said solemnly. "My mother is dead, my home destroyed long ago".

Bulma's heart throbbed painfully and she clutched her chest. No words escaped as she gasped for breath.

"My mother is the mistress of a king, I know what that means. He does not love her, nor would he ever. When I was conceived it was accidental. When my people bear their first child we lose our venom, the one strength we have, the one reason my mother was ever a mistress in the first place. After Freeza was destroyed the people of Aracona were in an uproar. The king had promised Freeza money and slaves in return for Freeza keeping his pet monkey on a leash."

He looked at her and she understood. _That monkey was Vegeta. Freeza promised to keep Vegeta from destroying the planet._

"But while the people were sold into slavery and every coin of their wealth plundered the king remained safe and wealthy in his palace. But the people dared not strike against the one thing keeping the planet in one piece. And with Freeza out of the way the king needed protection, but at the same time he could not look weak before the angry people. So he took on an arcnoid mistress, a body guard although the people who never suspect as much. Our venom is deadly to every species, and with an arcnoid mistress always in his shadow the king was once again safe from his own people." He paused to let out a deep sigh. "If my mother could no longer protect the king then she was of no use. But she struck a bargain. She bargained that she would continue to protect the king until the very last drop of her venom was used, then I could become a body guard for the Queen and they would once again be safe"

"Bulma, I have no home and no family, I have no where to go and no one to go to. But listen" he whispered, holding an arm up to Bulma's ear. She found herself holding her breath, listening. Concentrating she closed her eyes, and as the darkness came to life before her eyes she heard it. The roar of lava flowing, the thunderous crash of a wave breaking, the undeniable sound of blood coursing through veins.

"I hear it", she whispered.

"Good, now listen" he replied, taking her wrists gently and holding them over her ears. Closing her eyes she let the sound of her blood coursing through her veins fill her ears.

Opening her eyes she looked up at the young arcnoid, her look questioning.

"Listen. That's the sound of life. Your heart has not given up, it still pumps the blood through your veins, it has not given in." he whispered, his eyes shining in the dim light.

Bulma found herself closing her eyes once more, relishing the sound. _He's right_, she thought to herself, _my heart hasn't given up_.

_And if my heart hasn't given up yet, then neither have I_ she declared resolutely in her mind. The thought gave her strength.

"You're right" she declared out loud, taking the arcnoid's two forelimbs in her hands, "let's give them hell"

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A/N: Again sorry this took so long, college is very busy and all. But I did sit down tonight and plan out the rest of the story so it'll be easier from now on. And spring break is in two weeks so my goal is to finish up this story while I'm home, but only if you guys keep commenting :P thanks again for all your patience


	9. There's No Turning Back

Ladies and Gentlemen please keep your hands and legs inside at all times and enjoy the ride

**There's no turning back.**

The soft metallic _click_ of a lock sliding out of place froze Vegeta in his tracks. Without a sound he crossed the room, crouching out of sight behind the door just as the door handle completed its rotation. The door had opened only a crack when Vegeta seized his chance. In one fluid motion his fingers found the opening and flung the door wide, his other hand shot forward and seized the intruder by the throat. Vegeta sneered as the lizard squirmed in his grasp and prepared to fling it aside when, without warning, every muscle in his body convulsed in pain. The lizard wretched itself free and quickly slammed the door, leaving Vegeta alone once more.

"What the…" he choked, gasping for air. Reaching for his neck, his fingers brushed the kai inhibitor and a growl rose in his throat.

"Naughty naughty prince. We mussst not be rude" the another lizard hissed from the doorway. In his torment Vegeta had not heard the door reopen or the lizard approach.

Before the lizard could blink its amber eyes Vegeta's fingers encircled its throat and forced its bulk against the wall. The lizard made a sharp clicking sound with its teeth as its lips curled into a devilish grin. Pain swept through Vegeta's body like a tsunami wave sweeps upon an unsuspecting shore, knocking him off his feet and leaving him gasping for air.

The lizard stood over Vegeta's flailing body, his muscles beyond his control, with its finger firmly clamped on a remote control device that triggered Vegeta's kai collar. Its laugh slithered between its teeth in long hissing sounds, clawing its way into Vegeta's ears like nails on a chalkboard. Vegeta fought to regain control of his pain-contorted muscles but to no avail, leaving him to grit his teeth and glare as his back arched off the floor and his limbs shook uncontrollably.

After several mind numbingly painful minutes the lizard released Vegeta from his torture and Vegeta was left gasping on the floor, furiously attempting to regain control over his body. The lizard crouched before him and hissed, "if you want your woman to remain alive and well you bessst never touch me again. Be a good prince and eat your ssssupper."

With that it stood and departed, leaving Vegeta on the cold metallic floor with a tray of food by the door. For several more minutes Vegeta left himself on the floor, allowing its coolness to soothe his cramped muscles. _The prince of all saiyans, helpless before a mere lizard_ he thought angrily. _I'll be damned if the last thing that slimy bastard feels isn't my hands around its neck_.

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Bulma found herself in bed in Capsule Corp, but this time she knew she was dreaming. Looking around she noticed how the lines between objects blurred and how all the pictures around her room were faceless. Sliding her feet back into the pink slippers she noticed they weren't as soft as she remembered them, and the texture wasn't quite right. These details had eluded her when she last dreamt she was here. Standing she didn't bother with the robe, and she wandered out into the hallway in just her sleeping gown.

She stood in her doorway, gazing down the hall that lead to her parent's room, contemplating what to do. Turning to look down the remainder of the hallway she was faced with a daunting blackness. The shadows of the hallway dissolved into nothingness, into pure blackness. Taking a step toward her parent's room the darkness crept closer. A few more steps and it swallowed her door, leaving no chance of turning back. She turned and strode boldly forward, her footsteps never making a sound. Despite her ghostly presence her ears where alive with a symphony of sound; her steady heart beat like a drum setting the stage, each breath like that of a singer as they open their mouth to sing.

As she drifted down the hallway she noticed how the door were only mere outlines on the walls, never truly leading anywhere. She slid her fingers gently over the smooth surface of the walls, never encountering any bumps or doorframes. That is until she reached Vegeta's room. Bulma recoiled her fingers in surprise, not expecting the protruding doorframe. Tentatively she opened the door and as it swung inward Vegeta's bedroom sprawled out before her. Inside she could see Vegeta lying on the floor, his back against the cold marble.

"No one ever wins this game" he said coldly, "This is where heroes and evil villains alike come to die. For once you succumb to the weakness of love and passion, you're as good as dead."

"Vegeta?" she said softly, her hands resting on her heart so that her strength would not fail her.

For a moment his head snapped in her direction and his eyes looked straight into hers, but then continued on as if searching for the source of her words. His balled his hands into fists and pounded his temples lightly as he whispered, "then I am truly going mad."

Bulma quickly approached him and ever so gently she let the tips of her fingers caress his right cheek. Without warning Vegeta sat bolt upright, shaking his head and cursing. Then he was on his feet walking past her and toward the door.

"How did I let myself become this weak" he spat, slamming his fist against the wall, "I was a destroyer of worlds, a murderer of family and friends, a monster in the dark, evil. And here I am, come to die." Angrily he threw another punch at the wall. "No" he muttered, "I am the prince of all saiyans. I will not let a weak human earthling be the death of me."

Bulma felt tears well up in her eyes, _how could he say such things_. She reached for him but the farther she reached the further away he became. She froze, _I'm losing him_.

"Vegeta!" she cried out, but this time he did not seem to hear. Clutching her heart she let her head forward, let the tears fall. She watched as a tear dripped from the tip of her nose, cascading through empty air into nothingness. Startled Bulma screamed as she looked up, looking for Vegeta, but the darkness was closing in around her. It squeezed her, pulled her, pushed her, and threatened to tear her apart.

It's just a dream she cried, but no matter how hard she tried she could not wake up. As the darkness collapsed around her she forced her eyes open and she found herself staring up at the dingy yellow ceiling of her cell. Panting and covered in a cold sweat she rolled haphazardly off the bed and stumbled into the washroom. Splashing cold water on her face she caught a glimpse of her reflection. Her eyes were bloodshot and red, deep dark circles had taken residence under her eyes, and her lips were cracked and pale. The very sight of herself made her stomach churn. Her hair was frizzy and mangled from where she had fallen asleep while it was still wet, and she was dressed in the torn, dirty battle suit she had adorned for the last battle.

Sinking to the floor she covered her mouth with her hands as she sobbed, letting the tears run freely. Within moment the arcnoid boy was beside her, wrapping his furry arms around her, and resting his fuzzy head on her shoulder. Leaning her head on his she could the blood pulse beneath his skin, a reminder of her inner strength.

Taking several deep breaths she steadied her trembling body and calmed her hurried breathing. With a sigh she gently tapped the arcnoid boy on the arm and he pulled away. Drying her face with the back of her hand she allowed the arcnoid boy to help her up. Placing a hand over her heart to bolster her strength once more she strode from the washroom.

For the first time she noticed several trays of food by the door. She stomach rumbled loudly, impatiently reminding her that she hadn't eaten for quite some time. As she began toward the food she saw the red haired child in the corner of the room and her blood turned to ice in her veins. Its eyes were staring straight through her, right into her soul. She could feel a tiny fist close over her heart and squeeze. Her breath caught in her throat and her limbs defied her commands to move. But the arcnoid boy was right behind her, pushing her forward and turning her gaze from the blood red eyes. Looking down at the food Bulma found she was no longer hungry.

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Despite his lack of appetite Vegeta forced the food down, knowing he would need it to bolster his strength. He chewed his food slowly, focusing on it a much as possible so that his mind would not stray to _her_. But despite his best efforts he found himself slamming his fist into the wall once more, damning her to hell. _What have a fallen to_, he thought angrily,_ hearing that woman's voice, as I lay defeated on the floor_.

Vegeta was no stranger to hearing voices during his moments of weakness. When he was first taken aboard Freeza's ship he heard them constantly, the voices of his father and friends, saying they would come for him but they never showed. All he had were their voices. As time went by the voices grew more distant and one day he could no longer hear them at all, just Freeza's cold voice degrading him and punishing him…

Vegeta gritted his teeth and dropped the tray upon the floor, allowing it's loud _crash_ to clear his mind. He heard the soft _click_ of the door but this time he didn't move, only stood and waited.

"That'sss a good prince" the lizard hissed, "now be a good prince and come with usss."

Vegeta felt a growl rise in his chest but he stifled it, and obediently he followed the lizard and the meuhvaches down the hall.

"Do not be afraid to die prince, we are looking forward to disssssecting your dead body" the lizard sneered, his teeth _clicking_ as it laughed.

_And I look forward to pulling your intestines from your mouth and using them to strangle your pathetic form_, Vegeta thought darkly as he crossed his arms and walked down the hall with his head held high.

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Bulma let out a startled yelp as she jumped up from the bed when the door swung open and slammed into the wall with a loud _crash_. In the doorway stood a meuhvache she had hoped she'd never see again. His red eyes locked onto hers and it gave a bellowing laugh. In a few short strides it reached her where she cowered against the wall and seemingly without effort it plucked her from the floor and threw her across the room. With a dull _thud_ she collided with the floor and rolled into the hallway.

Gasping to catch her breath Bulma tried to stand when a boot met her ribs with a sickening _crack_. Moaning Bulma allowed her body to roll her onto her back, every breath sending tremors of pain through her body. When she finally dared to open her eyes her breath caught in her throat and she felt her muscles liquefy around her bones.

Glaring down at her was a monster of a man, his deep blue skin and jet black spiked hair brought the distant memory of Vegeta's whore to her mind and if she were not so scared she might have been angry. His bulking mass seemed to be entirely made of muscle; his broad chest and torso were plated in metallic armor made of a deep red metal that shone like a pool of blood under a moonlit sky, his feet bore metallic boots of the same fashion although they didn't seem to make a sound against the floor, and hanging from his shoulders was a cape as black as the darkness from her dream. His blood red eyes seemed to bore into her soul and she felt her heart skip a beat.

"Father" the arcnoid boy said quietly, as he dangled helpless in the meuhvache's grasp.

The monstrous man looked up at him and sneered, "you are no son of mine. Nothing so disgusting would ever come from my seed. No, you were sired from an arcnoid." His words etched grief upon the arcnoid boy's face and the boy let his gaze drop to the floor. Then the monster returned his gaze to Bulma. Without a sound he crouched down, examining her more closely. "Such a weak thing," he sneered, "But you are Vegeta's one weakness, and I will ensure that you are the death of him" and with that he plucked Bulma from the floor and holding her by the back of her shirt he dragged her behind him as he began down the hall.

Bulma's chest exploded in pain and every jostling movement sent fresh waves of pain down her spine. _Vegeta_, she cried silently, _I'm sorry_.

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A/N: The plot thickens. Stayed turned for Round 3, coming up next! And don't forget to write me some comments to let me know you're still reading haha. It's no fun writing to an empty internet.


	10. Ding, Round 3

Hey there groovy people of the internet! So sorry this update took soooo long :( I swear I had most of it written about a week after the last chapter, but when the weekend came around I found myself sick and incapacitated. Then it was spring break! Yay right? Wrong. Guess who had to work the whole week? Me. Well anyway I tried my best to make it worth the wait and I've got big plans in store for the next chapter. Enjoy!

**Ding, Round 3**

There he was, back where it all began.

As Vegeta stood in the circular room he couldn't help but think of the events that had transpired since he was last here. So much had happened and yet he was never certain how much time had passed. Had they been here for days, weeks, months or even years? Here on Meuhvachidor hardly any time at all had passed by their time keeping measurements, the games were only beginning.

Exchanging his ruined saiyan armor for a fresh set he began his warm up routine, and feeling his muscles ripple beneath his skin reassured him that not all was lost. "This inhibitor may limit my kai, but my strength is endless" he sneered at the empty room. As the veins in his neck bulged outward from exertion he felt the inhibitor bite into his skin, as though it was taunting him.

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Blood was beginning to run down Bulma's chin as each turn of a corner brought on a coughing fit that left her hands soaked with the redness of her life.

Bulma had taken to looking into doors as they passed; it helped distract her from the pain. They had passed countless empty rooms like the one they had come from, but several more seemed to be infirmaries. But the contents of one room took Bulma's breath away; it was lined from wall to wall with banks of monitors and the sight of it made Bulma's eyes glimmer with hope. But the hope quickly faded as the room grew further and further away.

More out of coincidence than planning, Bulma allowed her bloody hand to scrape against the floor, leaving a dark smudge of blood in their wake. Despite the pain Bulma found herself smiling as she watched the dotted trail of blood grow with every step. Like Hansel and Gretel leaving their bread crumb trail, Bulma left a trail of her own blood behind to lead her back to her a chance of escape. She only left small smears every few feet, hoping no one would notice them against the hard stone-like floor. Every corner brought up more blood, and every cough of blood prolonged her trail.

Then they came to an abrupt halt outside a metal door, identical to all the others that lined the hallway. The king tossed her inside effortlessly, shutting the door with a loud _thunk_. Bulma allowed the coolness of the floor to draw the heat from her battered body as she fought to catch her breath. With each inhale her ribs bit painfully at her side, but she was growing accustomed to the pain.

A soft _tap_ drew Bulma from her brief reprieve as her head fell to the side, looking for the source of the noise. Before her, not even a foot away, was the little red headed girl from before. Her blood red eyes stared down at Bulma, devouring her under their gaze. She was small, not bigger than a child, but she stood tall and proud like a warrior upon the field of battle. Her body face off to the side with her head turned in Bulma's direction, not unlike Vegeta when he took the field. _Vegeta_, the word rang in her mind.

Remembering the arcnoid boy's warning she tried to avoid meeting those blood red eyes, by she could escape their piercing gaze. Stealing a glimpse Bulma found herself frozen in place, not even her eyes obeyed her command to move or even blink. Those blood red eyes reached straight into the depths of her mind, the depths of her soul. _Those blood red eyes…_

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Finishing his routine he reached for a nearby towel but before he could grab hold of it the room was plunged into darkness. Hesitating he proceeded to grab the towel and wiped the sweat from his face. He forced his breathing to slow, allowing his muscles to relax, enabling his concentration to focus on interpreting the sounds that came alive around him. His sharp saiyan eyes could not make out anything in this darkness but his keen hearing painted the picture within his mind. There was a gentle hiss of an air vent in the corner but his superior sense of smell detected more CO2 in the mixture than usual. The monitors in the center of the room were humming softly, turned off but not powered off.

Then a gentle breeze from the other end of the room made the hair on the back of his neck stand on end. _They must have opened the door to the arena_, he thought to himself. Even when pausing his breath for a few moments he detected no sound, and slowly he began to make his way toward the door. As he crossed the room he tripped over the armor he had left there earlier, cursing as he stumbled. Then from the darkness came a blinding light and Vegeta had barely staggered out of the way before a column of fire blazed past him, burning through the air above the armor he had tripped over.

The flame was a brilliant white that burned the back of Vegeta's eyes when it blazed it's way through the dark, leaving him completely blind until his eyes readjusted to the darkness. Crouching low Vegeta silently balled up the towel he still held in his hands, contemplating a plan. Vegeta allowed his signature smirk to haunt his lips as he hurled the towel toward the ceiling where it hit with a wet _smack_. Casting his eyes away from the column of light that sought the source of the noise he sprang forward and burst into a sprint.

He had just enough time to clear the doorway before the column of flame reached the wall he was running beside and the crunch of his boots on dirt signaled him to change his course, now running in a wide arc both away from the flame and toward it's source.

As he got closer and closer to the source he had less and less time to outrun the flame that licked at his heels. In a split second decision he planted his front foot hard on the ground in front of him, redirecting his momentum to spring backwards, up and over the flame. As his back arced over the flames he felt it's heat bite sharply at his back, but as quickly as it had come it was gone and the cool air was around him once more. As his heels cleared the flames his palms found the dirt beneath him and he shifted his body weight right, cart wheeling himself back onto his feet and back toward his target.

Before the flames had a chance to change direction he lowered his shoulder and rammed full force into the source. The source let out a _huhh_ as Vegeta knocked the breath from her lungs, sending her sprawling on her back beneath him. Quickly pinning her down he snarled loudly in her face, as two thin columns of flames burst forth from her hands. The light from the flames granted Vegeta a vision of the fire wielders face.

A large pink burn ate away at the right side of her face and left her scared and hideous. Her right eye had been melted shut but her left eye glared at him, filled with hatred. She screamed at him and thrashed wildly beneath him but he held her firm.

Suddenly her movement ceased and her limbs fell silent beneath him. "Please" she rasped, her voice barely a whisper. "Please. I do not wish to fight. Once I may have set entire planets ablaze, reducing them to ash, but no longer. The rage that was once tainted my battered soul has been purified and my savage heart tamed by a being so beautiful and pure the universe has never seen their equal. They are half of my soul, half of my heart, half of my very being. Please. I do not want to fight; I only fight to save the only thing beautiful in my world. I must fight to save my other half, lest I wither away" By now Vegeta could almost taste the salt in the air, her tears were so plentiful.

"To find the other half of yourself is to finally find the melody to the tuneless words you have been singing your whole life. Words that are empty and hollow, missing a melody which by itself is passionate but meaningless. It is only when the words begin to fade, when you find yourself struggling to remember just how they go, that their melody appears. The words may fear rejection and the melody may fear dissection, but when they finally blend together they form music the likes of which the universe has never seen. The song is beautiful, enchanting, compelling and magnificent. I am but a hollow set of words, torn from my melody. Please, without my melody I myself might forget the words I sing and lose myself amidst a sea of broken dreams."

The pyrothian finished her long-winded plea, and resided to silently sobbing, her words leaving her. Vegeta remained motionless, his thoughts whirling. Although they now sat in silent darkness the sound of Bulma's heartfelt laugh seemed to echo in the emptiness around him as he breathed it in, her quirky excitement when she triumphed where other humans has declared the impossible bubbled in his chest, her stubborn tone when she refused to give in wrapped it's arms around him like lovers embrace, and the sound of her heartbeat worked in rhythm with his. But in a blink the sensation dissipated, leaving him alone again in the silent darkness.

_Fool me once_, he mused as his thoughts brought the memory of the arcnoid bitch to his mind. Vegeta knew the pyrothian's were cunning liars, weaving words in a web of emotion that ensnared their listener and bound them tightly. He would not be fooled twice. Releasing her wrists his hands wrapped around her throat, and in one fluid well practiced motion he twisted her head to the side with a loud _snap_. Almost instantly her body went limp beneath him, the life departing her bones like a breeze blowing through the trees.

Within moments the darkness was vanquished in a burst of light and Vegeta found himself completely blinded once again as his eyes desperately tried to readjust, the air exploding with cheers. As his eyes watered slightly he managed to glance upwards, realizing the ceiling had opened to reveal the stadium above them. Some spectators were chanting his name, others were cheering while still others were booing him. Stumbling to his feet and shielding his eyes with one hand he looked around for Bulma. From above the now retracting dome ceiling a cage descended, though his contents were not what he was expecting.

When the cage finally opened the woman inside fell to the ground in a heap, and the smell of salty tears was once again fresh in the air. She dragged her broken body along the ground, blood seeping from various wounds all over her flesh. From the other cage the arcnoid bastard fell to the ground, but once he caught sight of Vegeta he quickly scurried over unharmed and took his place at Vegeta's side. With a snort Vegeta's eyes searched for Bulma but she was nowhere to be seen.

His search was interrupted by a sudden wail of anguish, emitted from the broken woman. She had made her way to the pyrothian and she had collapsed sobbing upon the pyrothian's chest. Her shaking hand reached for the pyrothian's newly chilled cheeks as the other grasped for the pyrothian's hand clenched tight in death.

Vegeta stood in a stunned silent, the noise from the crowd a distant murmur as the scene before him unfolded like a flower before a storm.

The broken woman now held the pyrothian's head in her arms as she rocked herself back and forth, her anguished wails persisting. The tears seemed to glisten in the artificial light as they pour from her eyes and raced down her cheeks. Her hands trembled violently as her fingers grabbed desperately at the pyrothian's flesh, as if to usher forth the life that had fled the body.

As Vegeta watched silently, a different scene emerged before his eyes. Blinking he tried to clear it away, but it only grew clearer. Before him lay his own dead body with Bulma wailing over him. Her perfect face marred by the tears streaming down her cheeks, her soft red lips quivering miserably as her gentle fingers traced the hard lines of his face. Her blue eyes looked up at him, tears shining brightly in her eyes, before the apparition burst into flames.

Staggering back Vegeta realized the broken woman had donned the pyrothian's gloves – an advanced pyrotech that modified the molecular chemistry of the air surrounding the wearer, rearranging the molecules so that they formed highly flammable gases that the wearer could then ignite with a tiny spark generated by the gloves – and set them both ablaze. Her wails were now silent as her body draped over her dead lover, separated in life but now unified in death.

For a moment Vegeta was humbled by the complete and utter devotion he witnessed before him, but the feeling quickly dissipated as the inferno began to blaze out of control. It burst upwards, hungrily consuming the air around it until the spectators found themselves fleeing the stadium in fear.

Grabbing the arcnoid bastard Vegeta made a run for the anteroom and for the only escape. Just as Vegeta found shelter within the round room the door burst open and a small army of meuhvaches flowed in, seeking to quench the inferno.

In the chaos Vegeta gripped the arcnoid bastard tightly as he shoved his way through. Spilling out into the hallway Vegeta collected himself and calmly began to precede down the hallway, hoping to be ignored in the confusion.

Sure enough all the meuhvaches were more concerned with the inferno, and ignored him as they shoved past. _What could he possibly do with that kai inhibitor around his neck? Where could he possibly go? _

"We must find Bulma!" the bastard cried out, his hairy limbs hugging itself tightly. _Yes_, Vegeta thought to himself, _curious that I would be rewarded with only part of my prize_.

"My third prize" Vegeta said questioningly, "what was it."

"Princess Medon" the bastard said quietly, "and she has been trying to ensnare Bulma since she was freed.

Vegeta stopped in his tracks. Medon. The word echoed in his mind. Through his mind's eye he saw her again, the small babe suckling at her mothers breast. By Freeza's orders Vegeta was to capture the royal family of Bronzonian, and bring them to him at once. The mother's eyes were as black as the heart of the saiyan that stood before her, and the babe at her breast cried madly in his presence. The king had long since been killed, and the prince exiled.

Bringing the remnants of the royal family before Freeza he still remembered the lizard's sinister feminine laugh. "Hmm this fair beauty will make a most succulent slave. As for the babe, kill it" he said dismissively, waving his hand for them to leave his presence. As his cohorts carried the screaming babe from the room she paused as she took a breath, opening her blood red eyes to stare straight into Vegeta's very being. He had felt his body moving without his command, trying to retrieve the babe from harm. But Freeza's guards pinned him to the floor before any damage could be done. Breathless Vegeta found himself staring up at the ceiling but not remembering how he got there.

"Hmm interesting. Take the babe for testing" Freeza said coyly, his smile sending shivers down his minion's spines.

Vegeta would never forget those eyes, _those blood red eyes…_

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Will Bulma be able to resistant Medon's bewitching stare? Will Vegeta be able to save Bulma from those blood red eyes? Find out next time on Dragon Ball Z!


	11. Bulma Falls Down the Rabbit Hole

Hey groovy people of the Internet, school is oveeeer! I've been working on this chapter for a while but then finals hit so I couldn't finish it up until now.

**A/N PLEASE READ:** This chapter might seem a little confusing at first, but hang in there I promise it will all make sense in the following chapters.

**Bulma Falls Down the Rabbit Hole**

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Bulma awoke in a daze, her mind groggy and her head pounding. Gripping her forehead with a sweaty palm she tried to steady herself. Even though she could feel the coolness of a floor pressed against her back the room seemed to be spinning all around her, colors swirled together as the lines between objects blurred, leaving Bulma nauseous before she could even stand. For the briefest moment she expected to see Capsule Corp come into view before her eyes, but as memories of recent events flooded her mind the harsh white lines of her cell came into view and any hope of Capsule Corp was gone in an instant. Every muscle in her body tingled painfully, as if they had all fallen asleep as her legs so often did when she conducted long experiments in her lab. Like a legion of angry ants the neurons under her skin sent needle sharp pricks of pain to her brain. But as Bulma lay still the angry prickle beneath her skin began to recede and soon she didn't feel them at all.

Groaning she pushed herself into a sitting position, releasing her forehead to rub her temples. As she sat up she felt the bile rise in her throat and for a moment she feared she might be sick, but the moment passed and after a few shallow breaths she bravely looked up to engage her surroundings. The room was a standard 8x10 cell, with no windows and a lone metal door. Swaying slightly, Bulma stood on shaky legs and staggered toward the door. Leaning forward heavily she gave the handle a hard tug, but when it refused to give she could not say she was surprised.

Slumping against the wall by the door her eyes found the floor beneath her feet. The stone was perfectly smooth, without so much as a crack or bump from corner to corner. As the stone met the wall it seemed to melt away, seamlessly sloping upward into the concrete-like wall. But as the walls continued their vertical climb they encountered no ceiling, climbing upwards indefinitely until blackness swallowed it whole.

As her eyes gazed upwards into the darkness the door beside her swung open suddenly, but her exhaustion only granted the intrusion the laziest of glances. At first only light flooded through the doorway, filling the room until it too was devoured by the darkness of the endless ceiling. But then two blood red eyes met hers and the cow like beast slowly entered the room. His flat bovine head was level with her porcelain face where she still stood slumped against the wall. In shock Bulma stumbled backwards, fleeing as far as she could go as her muscles finally came to life beneath her skin.

Without warning her back slammed against the opposing wall, knocking the breath from her lungs and flooding her brain with pain. As her body fell to the floor of it's own accord her mind was back on that stone cold table, staring up at the stark white ceiling. Those two red eyes seemed to sparkle as the cold at her back was quickly driven away by heat - heat that ate away at her flesh until she felt as though she was melting. Lying on the table she could feel her flesh turn to liquid, pouring over the edge of the table and onto the floor. _No_! she screamed, trying to hold herself together. Then she could feel her life's blood pouring from her melted veins, washing like a wave over the flesh that had fallen to the floor. As every layer of her slowly melted away in agonizing pain she flowed over the edge of the table, falling top the previous layer of herself that had already found the floor. Soon only her mind remained atop the table, and soon enough that too melted away, and as her mind poured into the remnants of her body on the floor she found herself crumpled in a heap in the corner of her cell. The evil meuhevache was slowly entering the room; its movements were slow, as if it were moving through molasses.

Bulma could feel her fingers tracing the scarred battlefield of her back, her once perfectly smooth back that had been unmarred by neither bump nor crack from shoulder to shoulder. Yet now the blisters had left craters while her melted flesh had coalesced into hideous mounds. Rage raced from her fingertips as the blood in her veins boiled. Bulma felt her anger swallow her whole and she made no move to stop it. As she stood she felt adrenaline flood into her muscles and with a barbarian like scream she threw herself toward that evil monster.

As she hurled toward the monster she watched as it's eyes went wide, but only for a moment before her fingers found them and tore them from their skull. The monster cried out in pain and stumbled backward but Bulma was consumed with blood lust. As it fell back into the doorway Bulma seized the door and slammed it upon the meuhevache's skull, trapping its head between the door and the doorframe. Without hesitation Bulma pulled the door momentarily before slamming it forward again, and again. Panting she gave the meuhevache another savage kick before staggering into the hallway, the blood dripping from her porcelain face.

To either side of her the hallway stretched on endlessly, with countless doors aligned along each wall, all the exact same as the one she had come from. As the floor seemed to stretch and pull before her eyes Bulma found herself at a loss. _What do I do now?_ She thought in despair, _Where do I go?_

As she stood dumbly in the hallway she became aware of a warm but wet sensation creeping up her arms. Holding them out before her the breath rushed from her lungs in an ear-piercing scream as she witnessed the sticky blood that coated her arms in their entirety. Stumbling back against the wall she frantically tried to wipe the blood from her arms but every attempt only spread it further.

_What have I done?_

Before her eyes the blood seemed to pour off her arms in an endless fountain, pouring onto the floor and pooling at her feet. Screaming Bulma frantically stumbled backwards, keeping one shoulder on the wall as she tried to stop the blood from falling. Every attempt she made to cease its flow resulted in more blood than before, whether it was hers or not she could not tell. As she looked up, desperate for somewhere to go she could only see the walls closing in around her, trapping her, threatening to drown her in blood.

Screaming once more she squeezed her eyes shut with as much force as she could muster and when she opened them again she found herself still standing in the hallway before the door, the floor unscathed by blood other than the few droplets that had fallen from her arms and that which pooled around the meuhevache's head.

Was I dreaming? Did I just fall into a nightmare without even being asleep? Bulma's mind raced, asking itself questions to which she had no answers. But as her brain whirled away something on the floor in front of her drew her attention.

Blood. Dark and dry, the stains were too far away to have come from her. But a sharp tug in the depths of her brain brought up flashes of memory, of her being dragged along the floor leaving a path of her own life's blood behind so that she may find her way back. Speechless Bulma wearily approached the dried stains, examining them closer. The blood pooled slightly on the right side before continuing in a streak to the left that ended with a smear. Crouching down Bulma placed a blood-covered hand on the ground at her feet, dragging her hand slowly along the floor from right to left. In her wake she left a pool of blood that flowed into a streak.

Looking down the hallway to her right she swallowed the lump in her throat forcefully. Pulling herself back onto her shaky legs she followed the trail down the hall. With each step her heart fluttered and she found her pace quickening every passing moment. Soon enough she was sprinting down the hall, her tangled blue locks flowing behind her as her saiyan boots quieted the sound of her frantic steps.

Turning a corner Bulma stopped dead as the trail ended. Looking up at the endless hallway before her she paused to catch her breath. _I had already passed the door when I began to leave my trail_ she remembered, _but which door was it?_ Her hope faded as she looked down the expanse of hallway, containing numerous closed doors without a single one open.

With a cry of despair Bulma sank to her knees, tears threatening to flow from her eyes. But as she looked up again she realized there was something odd about these doors. _They're not doors at all, they're just outlines_…she realized, _just like that dream at Capsule Corp…_

"Am I sleeping?" she asked aloud, but even in the empty hallway no echo reached her ears. _That must mean…._

But just then her train of thought was derailed as a door ahead of her swung open, beckoning her forward with an ominous light. Pulling herself from the floor Bulma half run, half stumbled to the door way without even pausing to think. As she entered the room her mind whirled as an expanse of computers and their monitors stretched out before her. Sitting at the closest one she gave the keyboard a sharp slap, causing the monitor to slowly fade into life. As the darkness of the screen was formed words Bulma felt her stomach drop into her heels.

_My work_, she gasped, _all of it!_ Scrolling with the arrow-like keys she found all of her life's work displayed before her, from hover cars to capsule technology it was all there. Every blue print, every experiment, every make and model, they had it all. And that wasn't the worst of it. As she continued further down the page she found a section that at first only seemed to be a list of names. Reading through the list Bulma realized it was a list of just about everyone she knew, from her parents to her coworkers to the Z fighters. To her horror Bulma discovered that all of the names were hyperlinks, each one redirecting to a full-page bio.

As she scrolled through the list she found Goku's name in bright blue letters. Half in fear and half in wonderment she clicked his link. In an instant his face was before her, that child like grin and that big spiky hair. Her heart throbbed painfully as she looked at his picture, _oh Goku I miss you so much_. Wiping away the tears that had suddenly sprung from her eyes she noticed some words in big bold letters beneath his picture.

_**Saiyan. Contestant. Prize: Chi Chi. Retrieval: standby, awaiting approval code.**_

"NO!" She screamed, a burning rage lighting the blood within her veins aflame. "You can't have them! I won't let you do this to them!" she screeched as she hurled the monitor to the floor with her blood soaked hands. As the monitor crashed to the floor the others flared to life, each proudly displaying the photographs of someone near and dear to her; her mother and father, Yamcha, Chi Chi, Krillen, _everyone_. For a moment she stood in disbelief, but as the moment passed she was filled with a blood lust she had never known before. Snatching a nearby keyboard she began violently smashing everything in sight. As the keyboards snapped like twigs she would pick up another, swinging them like baseball bats at every monitor in sight.

As she stood amidst the wreckage she heard a soft hum, coming from a door at the back of the room. Marching over she flung the door wide and coming face to face with the motherboard – the computer brain of the entire complex. Without a moment's hesitation she picked up her foot and smashed the large computer part to pieces. It was brittle and shattered after the first blow. As it fell to the floor the humming ceased, the whirl of hard drives spinning stopped abruptly and even the lights flickered slightly.

"No one messes with Bulma Briefs." she declared, kicking a nearby shard violently.

Suddenly she felt so very tired. Her eyes drooped and her limbs fell limply to her sides. As she tried to think, to process her current situation, her thoughts were stolen away by fatigue and her mind went numb. She felt her limbs moving beneath her and she made no move to stop them, although she really couldn't say where they were taking her. Her eyes transfixed themselves upon the floor, and all she saw was the shuffling of her feet.

She somehow carried herself out into the hallway, but as she tried to continue on she felt as though she was being pushed and shoved without any other presence around. Struggling with every step she pushed forward down the hallway, shoving past unseen obstacles while trying to stay on her feet. Then she found herself before a door, and as the pushing sensation continued against her back she grabbed the handle and fell through the door. Barely catching herself Bulma found the strength to lift her eyes, and found herself in her bedroom. Confused Bulma looked back over her shoulder but only the hallway of Capsule Corp. lay behind her.

"Bulma!" Yamcha called, "come here baby" patting the bed beside where he lay. Exhausted Bulma collapsed on the bed beside him, breathing deep his scent. "Hey now we just got you back, we can't have you running of again" he laughed, wrapping a strong arm around her and pulling her close.

_Yes_, Bulma thought as she drifted into sleep, _can't go running off again_.

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Stay tuned for the next installment of Dragon Ball Z!

A/N: I promise it will all make sense soon!


	12. The Monster Within

Hey there groovy people of the internet! I know the last chapter was pretty strange and probably somewhat confusing. If you enjoyed it you're in luck because you're in for more! If it's not your cup of tea then hang in there, I promise the next chapter will bring everything into prospective. So for now just buckle your seat belts and keep your arms and legs inside the ride at all times.

**The Monster Within**

_Medon…_

The word rang through Vegeta like a distant bell. He had begun running through the complex, reaching out for Bulma with his kai. Rounding a sharp corner Vegeta found himself facing a dead end. Turning to retrace his steps, he froze, sucking in his breath when a hiss when he saw the bastard meuhvache before him, glaring down at him.

Without a moments hesitation Vegeta leapt forward. As his feet left the ground time seemed to slow down all around him, the sound of his own breath the only noise reaching his ears. He was leaping and yet before him stood glass; separating him from Bulma as she was being tortured, separating him from Bulma as her glass cage closed around her, separating him from Bulma as the flames of the inferno rose to the skies. As his fist flew forward the glass shattered, breaking the silence all around him. As the glass wall within his own mind shattered all the sounds of the world around him rushed forth. His ears no longer heard glass shattering but instead it was bones breaking, the bones of the bastard meuhvache's face breaking to pieces beneath the force of his blow. Nearby other meuhvaches were bellowing, surrounding him from all sides.

As his toes found the floor time seemed to speed up, bypassing normal flow completely as it whirled by. Fists and weapons assailed him from every corner of his vision. The first few blows he calculated carefully but as they continued to fall he felt his muscles began to react of their own accord lashing out to block blows before he even saw them coming. The soldier within him took over, crushing skulls and dismembering limbs from their bodies. For a moment Vegeta felt as though he were looking down on his body, watching a monster murder it's assailants. But as the chaos dissipated it was his hands that were soaked with blood, his fists that ached from the force of his deadly blows.

He felt his gaze pulled to the bastard meuhvache, bellowing an pathetically sad sound as it's mangled arms twisted violently while it's face gushed blood from where pieces of its crushed skull pierced its skin. But as Vegeta looked down upon it flashes of Bulma's maimed and disfigured back danced before his eyes.

Vegeta watched as the monster within him dragged the bloodied body into a nearby infirmary. Mounting the body within a healing tank Vegeta watching with ghostly apprehension as his arm violently yanked the breathing apparatus from the tank before the doors closed with a hiss, locking themselves shut. As the tank began to fill with healing waters the beast cried out with a look of utter terror in its eyes, the whites of its eyes nearly swallowing the retinas whole.

For a moment Vegeta felt his fingers twitch, reaching for the shut off switch, but only for an instant. As Vegeta raised his head watched the water rise he came face to face with his reflection. The slightest turn of the head would cause it to vanish, leaving only the panic stricken meuhevache before his eyes. At just the right angle his reflection danced across the features of the meuhevache, blending their two faces until a hideous cold-bloodied monster formed.

As the healing waters surrounded the meuhevache its wounds began to mend, the blood turned the water a murky red, but Vegeta knew once the water surpassed the beast's head it would slowly drown; as the healing waters floodied it's lungs it would ever so slightly heal the damage it was causing. The creature would be drowning, but at the same time it would be healing just enough to prolong it's death. It would be pure agony, but a fate this creature surely deserved.

As Vegeta watched the meuhevache squirm pathetically within the tank he found his thoughts drifting. This monster was not unlike himself. Meuhevachador had once been a free planet, with no inhabitants but the natives. Then science came calling. The reptalthian ambassadors came offering peace in exchange for aid. What they gave was servitude, ensnarement. Countless meuhvache had died constructing this very arena, which had spanned across what had once been their fields and their homes. Every individual was given a choice, die trying to protect a planet that had long since lost or live. He had seen it countless times before.

And yet every warmonger was a hero to someone; a hero to those whose life was spared because that monger had killed the enemy before the enemy could kill them. But at the same time every enemy that fell was another life dying; another parent, another spouse, another sibling, another child. To the planets they conquered Vegeta was a monster, a cold bloodied killer. But to Frieza and his men Vegeta was a hero, a protector.

As he tilted his head ever so slightly his reflection once again danced around the glass, fusing with the monster within and as the cold red eyes of the reflection gazed up at him his mind's eye was taken back in time. All the people he killed flashed before him - surrounded him - their broken limbs and bloodied bodies clawed at his flesh. The sounds of their screams and anguish filled his ears and threatened to tear his mind apart. As the rubble of the buildings he destroyed fell around him he lost his balance and stumbled. But as he stumbled his hand caught the cool glass of the tank to steady himself and the images were gone. The monster within was barely able to keep it's snout above the water, and soon enough the water would flow freely into it's lungs.

_It was a monster who deserved to die_, Vegeta thought resolutely, _just as I too will one day die for my evil_.

Unable to bear these thoughts any longer Vegeta quickly existed the room. Once in the hall he put a hand on the wall to steady himself as he took several deep breaths. Each breath brought a sharp stab of pain piercing through his heart. Clutching his chest with his free hand he knew he had to escape this place, it was driving him mad.

As he collected himself a ball of black fuzz caught his eye amidst the carnage that remained in the hallway. The husk of black fuzz was just barely visible beneath several dead bodies of meuhevache. Vegeta moved toward it, knowing full well what it was, but a faint scent drifted past his nostrils and he stopped short.

_Bulma_.

Casting around wildly he sought more strands of scent. He had taken a corner that lead to a dead end, but he now realized it was merely were 3 hallways converged upon a lift. The doors of the lift were barely discernable from the rock wall but with a sharp thump the walls rumbled apart to reveal the lift. Stepping up onto the lift another whiff of Bulma's scent lingered in the air.

With the push of a lever in the center of the lift it ascended, floor after floor whizzing past. Then Bulma's scent came again, this one more recent. Halting the lift he gave the wall a sharp thump. As the wall drifted apart he found himself looking over a crowd of creatures. Every door in this hall was open and every creature free. Bulma's scent was stronger now. Pushing his way through the crowd Vegeta felt a crunch beneath his feet. Glancing down he took note of small bits of computer parts.

"Halt Saiyan" a creature before him commanded. It's skin was of a dark green hue with numerous antennae dangling from every limb. It's head was needle shaped with two large white globes for eyes on either side.

Vegeta strode by as if he hadn't heard, continuing to shove the mass of the creatures from his path. When a hand grabbed his shoulder he swore he merely blinked and he held an arm in his hand. As bright orange blood doused his saiyan suit as all eyes in the hall turned toward him. His own body had responded faster than his mind could render the flow of time. Dropping the limb with a snarl he continued forward, this time the crowd parted before him as no one dared to touch him.

_What the hell are standing around for_, he wanted to scream but he knew why. _There's nowhere to go._

As the scents of those alien creatures filled his nostrils Bulma scent was lost to him, like a leaf carried away by the wind. But even as his nostrils flared wide and he closed his eyes to the world around him her scent was lost among the masses. Dropping down into a crouch Vegeta surrendered his senses and focused what kai he could retain on the scents around him. The bright lights of the facility made complete darkness impossible, even when he closed his eyes, but as he took deeper and deeper breathes the world plunged into darkness. Scents reveal more than the eye can see, but when he closed his eyes and relied on smell alone the life fled from this accursed place.

"Prince of Sayians" a voice rang through the darkness, "Vegeta."

"Bulma?" Vegeta questioned, slowly opening his eyes. At first the brightness of the lights made her image blurry, but within a few blinks her figure was clear. She stood before him clear as day, but his nose told him he was alone. The scents that had been so strong at first had vanished, like the sweet smell of a summer's gentle breeze.

_My mind conjured those scents_, he realized, _I smelt what I thought I saw_.

As he stood a scowl took hold of his face, his coal black eyes looked down his nose at her apprehensively. Her face was pale and polished, much like that of a porcelain doll. Her brilliant blue eyes that were always ablaze with passion were cold and lifeless. As she stared blankly at him a drop of blood rolled down her cheek and fell to the floor, a crimson tear. Her saiyan armor was drenched with blood from her hands to her elbows. Her white saiyan boots had left a trail of bloody footprints behind her.

"Vegeta."

Even when her mouth moved to form the words Vegeta knew them to be distant, somewhere far away from here.

Then he blinked. A quick jerk of his eyelids to wipe the dust away before it settled, to refresh his eyes so they would not tire. But as the world went black for that single moment Bulma disappeared and a small child took her place. Alarmed Vegeta dropped instantly into fighting stance, but as their eyes met he froze. The muscles beneath his skin clenched tightly, his pupils dilated abruptly in surprise, and even his heart felt as though it skipped a beat.

A mane of flame red hair fell softly around her small face, her blood red eyes staring into the depths of his soul.

_Medon._

As he stared transfixed into those pools of crimson red he felt himself being drawn in, the world around him faded into nothingness and only her eyes remained. His mind tingled with the sensation of drowning, waves of red water swept him under, holding him down until his lungs burned with need. He kicked his legs savagely but the distant light of the surface slowly faded away. Unable to bear it any longer Vegeta sucked in a deep breath, the red water swirled around him and he felt it rushing into his lungs. For an instant, the briefest instant, Vegeta opened his eyes to his reflection in the glass facing him. For an instant he watched himself drown in the healing tank he had locked himself in, in the healing tank he had torn the breathing apparatus from. For an instant he was ready to pay for his crimes, for his evil, for his sins.

But as the red water flooded his lungs he was able to take another breath, and another. Each breath brought the light above the surface closer, each breath brought air closer. His heart pounding he took in rapid shallow breathes and finally, when he thought he could not take another breath of crimson water he felt his head burst from the water. Inhaling a deep breath of air the world exploded all around him. He felt his body fall to the floor, he saw Bulma's porcelain face leaning over him, he watched as another drop of crimson rolled down her cheek and dripped from her chin, watched as the drop fell between his eyes, felt it's impact upon the bridge of his nose.

As the drop spilt into two and rolled down his nose, each droplet found it's way to the corner of his eyes. As they dropped down from his skin to his eye he felt himself instinctively blink, as one would when a drop of rain found the eyes. But as he blinked the red droplets spread across his vision and his world turned red. Bulma's face looming over him came alive with hues of red and shades of black. She rose her hand, as though she were about to strike him, and without hesitation the back of his hand found her face. As his hand collided with her porcelain features the skin of her face shattered like glass, cracks rupturing as her face fell to pieces. But instead of blood it was sand that poured out, flowing as freely as time.

As her broken form fell to the floor he felt himself rising. Every muscle felt alive and blood pulsed through his veins with new vigor, and new strength. Clenching his fists he felt power within himself again, as the air around him crackled furiously. He could feel it, coursing through his veins, working his muscles, feeding his heart, darkening his soul.

_I am free. _

His sinister laugh echoed throughout the halls as his signature smirk once again graced his lips. The crackling in the air around him increased tenfold as he reached deep down within his abdomen, summoning forth all of his strength. As his fury tore from his throat he felt his mind seized by wave after wave of tingling sensations that shot down his spine and over his skin. He felt the skin of his scalp grow heavy as new bulks of hair shot forth as his power surged through him.

His fists clenched sharply as bursts of power shot through his arms, springing to life in the air between his fingers. His smirk grew dark and deadly as he flung the ball of power through the air where it collided with a nearby wall, bringing it crumbling to the ground.

_Fools._

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Stay tuned for the next chapter of Dragonball Z!


	13. The Other Side of the Looking Glass

Hey there groovy people of the Internet, I'm going in a bit of a different direction with this chapter. Now I know you're going to raise your eyebrows at the first part of this chapter but just hang in there, I promise I'm going somewhere with this. The ride isn't over yet.

**The Other Side of the Looking Glass**

The explosion rocked the entire complex, shattering glass and crumbling walls, it left nothing but destruction in its wake. The beakers in the lab trembled and shook, some even crashed to the floor. Stumbling he snatched the nearest beaker before it fell off the counter. _He's done it then, just as he said he would. How did it come to this?_

The events played in his mind with such clarity they hardly seemed to have occurred in years long since passed, but rather they felt as though they had just transpired before he walked into his lab.

He and his brother had been young when the icejin came. His people were of peace, the pursuit of knowledge and the achievement of prosperity. His entire planet, his small planet, had mastered the art of working as a community to ensure that none were starved nor uncared for. But when those monsters rained from the sky all their work and progress disintegrated overnight. By morning the planet his village was in chaos. Everyone sought to flee but no one had anywhere to go. His people accepted the universe as it was, and felt no need to explore space and thus they did not possess any method of space travel.

The icejins were particularly merciful - he later realized - for they were in sore need of doctors to heal their wounded, and scientists to develop their weapons and ships. But regardless they gave every soul a choice – live or die. His parents had chosen to die. Equipped with poisonous venom found on his planet they fashioned small dart guns. They boldly strode into the icejin camp let the poisonous darts rain down. If only they had known that icejin were naturally immune to that particular poison.

They were captured at once and made example of in the village center. They were hoisted by their arms above a large fire while the icejin's took turns aiming at them with their kai blasts, making a game of striking his parents as they squirmed while the flames bit at their ankles.

His brother was much too young to remember that day, but he still saw those flames in his nightmares. He had watched as a blast cut through one of his father's arms, leaving him to helplessly dangle by the other arm as the flames engulfed his legs. He still heard his mother's wail of anguish in the silence as she was struck over and over. His brother was far too young to remember any of it, but he would never forget it.

Another member of the village took them in - and some said that man was part icejin himself on his fathers' side, but he did not take them in for the love he bore them and he put them straight to work. He and his brother had grown up scrubbing floors, plowing fields, harvesting the crop. They would toil until they could no longer bear to stand, then they would be beaten relentlessly until they stood again. His brother was slowly consumed by hatred and it deepened every day.

The icejin still occupied his planet but as long as they healed their wounded and produced new weapons or tools they were allowed to retain their planet. The icejin would roam the villages, killing as they pleased while they laughed and sneered at the natives. _If only I had noticed sooner. The way he would look at them as if they were heros, the way he would steal glances out the window in hopes he would catch a glimpse of them as they went by. But I didn't notice. I was too busy keeping my nose to the grindstone to ensure we would be fed that night._

After an especially hot day in the fields my brother collapsed from exhaustion. I ran to his side but our guardian reached him before I did. My brother was plucked from the ground by the collar of his shirt before he was shaken violently back and forth. But as he was being shaken he let out a deep chuckle, a diabolical chuckle, that made the hairs on my neck stand on end and the rigid hand of fear gripped my heart. With a glimmer in his eyes my brother's hands shot forward and grabbed our guardian by the hair. Roaring with fury they both toppled to the ground.

As the rolled around in the dirt I rushed forward but my brother had found his footing before our guardian had and my brother promptly stomped his small foot down on his throat repeatedly. Our guardian choked loudly and for a moment my heart sank. But as I was about to move to grab my brother away a blast of light shot past me and found its mark upon the body on the ground. In an explosion of blood our guardian's head had burst like a melon under gunfire.

I had stood in a stunned silence as the icejin approached. They praised my brother for his battle prowess and offered to take him aboard as a recruit. My brother was ecstatic and as he bounced up and down with joy, droplets of blood rained off him.

I was transfixed, frozen in time as I watched a monster born before my eyes. But would not believe it. My eyes clearly saw my brother before me, his features identical to mine. He was young, angry and lost. He had no parents to look up to, and as much as I tried to be a good role model he never seemed to understand why I made us endure the hardships we did. We had nowhere else to go, and any orphans would be snatched up by the icejins in a heartbeat. After everything we went through, it was all in vain.

He looked up at the icejin and saw strength where I saw malice, he saw honor where I saw deceit, he saw heroes where I saw monsters. My brother was all I had left in the world and so I followed him as he trotted after the icejin as a puppy follows its master.

My brother's hate fueled his rage in battle and he soon surpassed all other recruits, young and old. The icejin saw great promise in him and he was rewarded for his loyalty. He was assigned to help oversee the construction of the new arena, for something called the intergalactic games.

The idea was simple; Coax the participation of the greatest fighters in the universe by kidnapping something they held dear. The fighters would eliminate each other one by one, ridding the icekin of enemies as well as providing a chance to utilize their dead bodies for research. The afore mentioned research would be funded by the revenue brought in by the audience, by the people who would come from far and wide to watch the massacre. Venoms, self-regenerating cells, specially adapted organs, weapons, and sets of armor were among the materials collected from the deceased.

Labor to build the arena came from all across the universe; they were all captives taken by the icejin's as they invaded countless worlds and like us they had been given a choice. Several billion laborers died in its construction; their bodies imbedded in the walls they had built. It was a sickening prospect. But my brother was beyond the threshold of right and wrong. He gladly beat the slaves into submission, gladly ended millions of lives, and gladly built the walls that would end a million more. Alas, he was my brother and I was too weak to be completely alone, too weak to chose death.

Once the arena was completed he was given a position of 'honor', one that could only be performed by the most ruthless of soldiers. I was still so naïve, I still believed he was the same young boy he used to be. But I now realize that boy had long been dead.

I never had any skill in the art of combat, nor the stomach for it. Although I did have an aptitude for science and research came to me with ease. When I received cadavers to work with I did my best not to think about the families they were leaving behind, especially their 'prize' whose fate now rested in the hands of some other ruthless warrior. I tried to only think of them as things, as the inanimate object they had become, and at first it was hard but over time it got easier. It's a miracle I still have my sanity.

I conducted my research with the best intentions. From the self-regenerating cells of one particular warrior I was able to mass-produce special red foam that would seal wounds and clean cuts. It couldn't regrow limbs but it greatly decreased the amount of pain suffered when such grievous wounds were inflicted. I concocted numerous anti venoms from fallen arachnoids, I produced a dart that would stun instead of kill, I produced a pill that would cleanse the blood stream of arachnoid venom, and I was even able to devise a healing tank whose waters could slowly mend any wound and heal any life form.

Even after all my work, I was still surrounded by suffering and death. Even after the icejin empire suffered a grievous blow with the death of Frieza our work still continued. Where I would only devise nonlethal weapons and methods of healing my fellow scientists would produce weapons of mass destruction by the millions and innumerous amounts of 'incurable' poisons. I was fighting a losing battle. And today it seems I lost.

When the icejins retreated to heal the wounds inflicted upon their empire they sold Meuhvachador to the reptalthians, a prospect that had left his brother ill at ease. To my eyes the reptalthians and the icejin were one in the same, but his hatred for them grew with each passing day. He felt betrayed, abandoned. I guess I had lived with those feeling for so long I didn't know what anything else felt like anymore. As his anger rose he took to torturing his prisoners, something he had never done before, and he enjoyed it thoroughly.

That was when _he_ came. My brother knew _his_ reputation, _he_ was once beloved by the icejins and the once spoke of _him_ as if _he_ were a god. But _he_ had turned traitor and greatly contributed to the death of Frieza and thus the fall of the icejin empire. I took _his_ initial readings when _he_ arrived. _He_ was certainly powerful, and _his_ prize possessed an intellectual integrity like none I had ever seen. But my brother took it upon himself to torture the poor fellow and _his_ prize, as if it would somehow avenge Frieza.

I could no longer ignore the evil and hatred within my brother. I knew he had to be stopped. For the first time I engaged in developing a lethal weapon. For the first time since my parents died I felt like I had a purpose, toiling away in the lab for countless days and nights without rest. _This whole planet and its evil must be destroyed, only complete and utter destruction can cleanse this place of its sins._

When my brother flung the door wide I felt my heart drop into my ankles, _he knows_. But he did not, and he confided in me that he was going to destroy this place. No words can express the relief I felt at that moment. For the first time in our entire lives we were on the same page. As I opened my mouth to tell him of my plan he spoke, declaring that he had a plan to set _him_ lose. _He _would destroy this place. My brother had two escape pods ready, in the launch bay. We were to be the only survivors. _He_ had been tranquilized as _he_ tried to escape the inferno that blazed in the arena; _his_ prize was at the mercy of Medon.

_Medon…_

She had been a gift from lord Frieza, to show how pleased he was with the arena. She was humanoid in appearance but she was hollow, her eyes lifeless, and not even her heart made a sound as it silently pumped blood through her veins. The icejin had broken her long ago. She obeyed every command without question, carrying them out in silence. When commanded she could put almost any lifeform into a trance. She could make their mind see, hear, and do anything she said, anything they commanded.

Although _his_ prize had proven more difficult to control Medon was still able to bend conform the intelligently stubborn mind to her will, locking it away. At first Medon was unable to sever the connection between willpower and motor function, and so it had killed a meuhvache, one of the last remaining females, and destroyed a server room. But confining the mind to an internal slumber they were able to lock it away in a hibernation chamber.

Then Medon set her sight on _him_. As _he_ lay tranquillized my brother stated they only needed to pull back _his_ eyelids to expose _his_ retinas for Medon to grasp a hold of _his_ mind. Through a series of internal battles and torments they worked _him_ into a rage. Then confining _him_ to a hibernation chamber on the other side of the arena _his_ mind lay dormant, unaware of the passage of time as the rage inside _his_ mind frothed like a feral beast.

He brother declared he would remove the kai inhibitor release _him_ from _his_ sleep and let _him_ tear the place apart. He gave an evil chuckle at the prospect of _him_ killing _his_ prize before _he_ realized their location.

And as promised I could fell _his_ rage from the other side of the facility.

_Vegeta._

At first I hated that man, that monster. But he is not so unlike myself. The icejin took our parents, our planet, and our lives. My brother and I built this place of sin, for it to be cleansed I knew we had to go with it. I thought of all the lives my brother had taken, of all the victims of his torture, and of the woman he had imprisoned. Medon was known to break the mental stability of her victims. Once her connection with them was broken they could no longer distinguish between the dream realm and reality.

_There is little time._

Snatching the device from the table, checking its parameters and setting the timer he prepared. With an exasperated sigh he looked around his lab. He had tried to save lives, but he only doomed them to further torture.

Leaving the room he headed for the hibernation chamber. Every few steps another blast would rock the compound and the walls would waiver. The hallway echoed with the sounds of pounding fists, creatures desperate to escape.

_In due time._

Racing down the hall he followed the maze of turns and lifts that took him to the dark recesses of the facility - hallways long since abandoned. The sound of his footsteps echoed off the walls around him, the sound of his exhausted breaths rang loudly in his ears.

Finally the door was before him, the dust brushed from the handle by his brother's visit. Quickly entering and locking the door behind him he armed the device. Setting it in the corner he quickly slammed his hand on the door lock and released the woman from her slumber.

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Fatigue suffocated Bulma's brain as she tried to think, she couldn't seem to open her eyes. She tried to move her limbs but sleep held them firm, only her heart seemed to be in motion. As she lay there, staring into the darkness of her own eyelids, she became aware of a sound in the distance. At first it was a soft rumble but it was quickly raised to a thunderous roar. Confused Bulma tried to sit up, but she only succeeded in ever so slightly moving her head. Her mind whirled faster, her muscles twitched as they came to life, and her eyes fluttered open.

At first the world was dark, only shapes and shadows danced across her vision. Then they began to take form, coalescing into the distinctive outline of a meuhvache standing before her. At first his features seized her heart with the cold hand of fear, her back tingled sharply and her mind flooded with memories of her torture. But as their eyes met she realized something was different; there was no evil in its eyes, only sadness.

Then her feet slipped and her knees slammed into the glass before her. Only then did she realize she had been standing. Bracing her arms on the side of her prison she rose back up, her legs shaking violently beneath her. With a hiss glass before her parted and air gushed in. Breathing it in deeply her muscles slowly stabilized. Taking a small step her knee buckled beneath her weight and she fell forward. As the floor came rushing up to meet her the meuhvache caught her beneath the armpits and hoisted her up. Taking her arm and wrapping it around its thick neck it pulled her along.

As it half pulled, half dragged her across the room her mind raced. _Where is Vegeta?_

A distant ticking sound caught her ear and she turned to face it. In the corner a small sphere seemed to glow in the darkness. An indicator screen flashed brightly with each tick but she could not mak out the display. _A bomb? _She could not be sure.

As the door before them swung open the meuhvache pulled her into the hallway before proceeded through a maze of corridors and lifts that left Bulma dizzy. As their current lift hummed quietly as it ascended a loud roar shook the building. The lights in the lift flickered suddenly and for a moment the lift stopped. Then it dropped.

Bulma felt as though her stomach had lodged itself in her throat as she felt the lift begin to freefall beneath her feet. But the drop only lasted a few seconds before the lift caught and continued to climb. Falling to her knees Bulma retched loudly. The meuhvache stepped back tentatively as she lost the remnants of her last meal.

When the lift came to a stop again she was able to pull herself to her feet and stumble into the hallway. As she held the wall for support she felt the hair on her arms stand on end as goose bumps spread over her body. Swallowing as she raised her head she came face to face with the small redheaded child from before. Screaming Bulma stumbled backwards, clawing at the meuhvache when it grabbed her. A horrific drowning sensation flooded her mind and headed ached painfully, her limbs trembled and her eyes squeezed themselves shut. She felt the arms of the meuhvache sweep her off her feet and she felt its body sway as it continued running down the hall.

When Bulma opened her eyes the child was gone, and the hall empty other than them. Then the meuhvache stopped by a monitor jutting from the wall. As it set her down she grabbed a nearby doorframe for support. It quickly typed in a line of commands as another roar shook the building yet again. Then, with a loud click, every locking mechanism in the surrounding hallways disengaged.

The sharp contrast from emptiness to chaos was instant. The door had all flung open and their inhabitants flooded into the hallway. With a loud bellow the meuhvache grabbed her arm while waving its other hand for the creatures to follow. The hallways shook as their procession stormed through, gathering up what must have been hundreds of creatures as they passed.

Then at last they came to a halt outside a large gate, like the door of a hanger. The meuhvache pushed it wide to reveal rows and rows of space pods, as far as her eyes could see. Pulling her forward he shoved her in one and slammed the door. From the rumbled the enveloped her little ship she could tell all the other creatures were doing the same.

A small display embedded in the door prompted her to select a planet. Her heart skipped a beat as she typed in Earth and watched an image of her home planet appear before her eyes. The pod requested confirmation and as her hand reached out to confirm the building gave another shuddering rumble.

Her fingers curled sharply, just barely avoiding the screen, as her a single word rang out through her entire being, _Vegea._

He was not perfect. He could be hard headed and down right infuriating, but he had risked his life for her. He could have abandoned her here but he didn't. And she wouldn't abandon him here either. Bracing her shoulders against the back of the pod she shoved forward with her legs. The door popped open and she fell on her backside, but she leapt to her feet and ran back out the door.

As pods began shooting off behind her she stumbled with every rumble of their takeoff but she managed to keep her footing. She did not know the hallways like the meuhvache did but she ran ahead anyway. As she ran she noticed a trail of blood beneath her feet. Slowing to stop she gazed down at the streaks. Following the trail with her eyes she saw a door ahead was propped ajar, and a pool of blood had dried before it.

As a chill ran down her spine she approached. As she grew closer she say the bloodied body of a meuhvache within the room. As she edged around the corner of the doorframe she cried out in horror as she recognized the beast on the floor. Dropping to her knees whilst letting out a wail of anguish Bulma reached forward with one hand then sharply drew it back, clutching her hand to her chest. It was the hand that had been crushed, the hand that had been healed by the beast on the floor in front off her. Its wings that had once been tucked in so tightly were sprawled across the floor, coated in blood. Her gentle eyes were lifeless sockets.

Crying out Bulma's mind flashed back to this very room, to the door opening and her tormentor walking through the door. She remembered the blood gushing between her fingers and under her nails as she ripped that bastard's evil eyes from his sockets. But they had not belonged to the bastard.

"Mama moo," Bulma cried out as she sobbed hysterically. _I did this. I killed her. I killed the only creature in this whole arena that tried to help me. Oh god, what have I done?_

Hauling herself to her feet she ran as fast as her feet could carry her. Her eyes blurred with tears and when she ran straight into a hard surface she never saw it coming. Wiping her eyes she gazed up at the object that had obstructed her path. Her heart fell to her ankles as she gazed up at Vegeta. Her skin prickled as his blood red eyes met hers.

_His eyes aren't red…_

"V-V-Vegeta?" she stammered, her voice catching in her throat as he stood before her. His nostrils flared as his foot flew before him, catching her square in the jaw and sending her flying down the hallway. As she bounced against the floor her shoulder gave a loud _snap_ as it took the brunt of her weight, leaving her in agonized tears by the time she rolled to a stop. As Vegeta advanced toward her she desperately crawled backwards, her hand slipping in the pool of Mama moo's blood.

As the back of her head hit the hard stone floor tears flowed freely from her eyes. _I'm surprised I have any tears left to shed._ But as she lay there in misery, her jaw shattered, her shoulder crushed, her head leaking blood, Vegeta appeared above her. Her jaw could not form the words so she pleaded with her eyes and for a moment Vegeta just gazed down at her.

But the moment passed and Bulma could only watched as he raised his white saiyan boot before swiftly bringing it down over her eyes.

The pain that exploded from her brain was excruciating. For several moments she could only lay there.

_Wait…I should be dead. My skull should be crushed beyond recognition. How is it that I can feel anything?_

The pain had not ebbed by the time Bulma managed to open her eyes. She founded herself once again strapped to a cold metal table. As she tried to move her head the pain exploded once more.

"Now, now. You mussst not move" a voice hissed in her ear. As she pried her eyes open she watched as a scaly claw extended over her vision, reaching up to her forehead and yanking out a syringe. At last sweet unconsciousness swept up and pulled her into its longing embrace.

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His dissent back into consciousness left him dazed and confused. All around him faces were peering down. But at the foot of his bed his own face starred back at him, but as his mind slowly returned to its senses he realized it was his brother. His brother stood with his arms crossed, glaring at his with those red eyes.

"He'sss awakeee," a voice said snidely. The reptilian head of the lead researcher appeared before him. "A traitooor you areee," he hissed angrily.

_What went wrong? I freed them. I sent this place free. I sent them home. I freed her. What…_

"It seemsss that even wheeen someoneee knowsss of Medooon and her powersss they still fall viiictim to theeem," Crone chuckled, "to deeeath with youuu."

He watched as his brother strode around the bed until he was next to him._ He set me up. He ratted me out. He betrayed me…_

He felt his whole word crash to pieces around him. His brother, his own brother.

"When you opened the releassse for the chaaamber it was Medooon insideee. Ssshe ssseized your mind asss ssssoon asss you releasssed her," Crone continued, the scratching of his pen on paper growing louder.

"The sssaiyan wasss never ssset free, nor was hisss woman. Medon has been having fun with theeem," Crone said as he finished writing and set the clip board down on a nearby table.

"Round fooour is about to beeegin. I hope you're reeeady."

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Our hero Bulma's torment never seems to cease. Has Vegeta betrayed her, turned on her? Or is some other trickery afoot? A well intentioned meuhvache granted us a glimpse into his endeavors, was all his work in vain? Find out next time on Dragonball Z!


	14. Angels and Demons

Hey there groovy people of the internet! I've been abroad the past couple weeks so I apologize for the delay in getting this chapter out. But here it is so enjoy ^.^

**Angels and Demons**

It's strange how long a single moment can last. Time cannot be ignored, it's always moving. To try and slow it down makes it pass faster but to try and urge it forward slows it down.

But here in this moment Bulma just let time pass. She was vaguely aware of herself in the vast emptiness but she did not stir. She could almost feel the sands of time swirling around her, wrapping around her and holding the moment still. Then the winds changed and suddenly the sand was whipping around her, stinging where it touched her skin and burning her eyes. Bulma raised her arm to cover her face, not daring to open her eyes. A distant pounding sound harassed her ears, refusing to cease. In the fury she could not tell if it was her heart's frantic beats or a pounding in her head.

Then the stinging ceased, like a break in the middle of a violent rainstorm. Opening her eyes her vision blurred, the world around her coalescing into a single form. But as she blinked it became clearer. The glass before her separated its shape from the metal walls around her. The floor pulled away from the ceiling and confined her between them. As she felt a breeze on her lower extremities she realized she was naked. Shivering she groped around her, looking for a way out. As her fingers met the surface in front of her the glass retreated, opening with a _hiss_.

Spilling out onto the floor Bulma tried to gain her bearings but the room around her was unfamiliar and her memory was clouded.

"Bulma," a voice called out as a dark fuzzy shape appeared before her. She felt its arms touch hers and she jerked away reflexively. The blur pulled back, unsure of how to proceed.

"Bulma." A different voice spoke, sharp and precise. It was a female, a small child by the sound. As Bulma turned to face the sound a blur of flame red hair filled her vision, the small face within blurred beyond recognition to her eyes.

Screaming Bulma flung herself away, crawling desperately across the floor as her legs tried to regain themselves. The dark form appeared again but Bulma slapped at it, her nails unusually long from lack of trimming. She felt them rake across flesh and the form retreated from view. As she scrambled across the floor Bulma found herself trapped in the corner with no way out. Refusing to let the tears fall she wiped her eyes furiously, trying to rub the remaining blurriness away.

"Bulma." The female voice said again.

"Get away from me you demon!" Bulma shouted, recoiling her legs ready to kick out if anything came near.

The figure with flame red hair approached, stopping directly out of her reach.

"You are free Bulma. Medon's hold on you is broken," the voice said softly.

"I don't understand" Bulma huffed, her chest heaving with the effort of calming her breathing.

"You must calm yourself. Round 4 draws near." The girl whispered, a small hand reaching up to tuck a lock of hair behind her ear.

As Bulma stared up in disbelief her vision began to clear. The face before her was not the demon that haunted her, but the similarity was eerie.

"Who are you" Bulma demanded, her breathing restored and her legs functioning.

"Who is but the form following the function of what, and what I am is a female" the girl answered, her voice calm.

"I can see that" Bulma snapped.

"I'm not questioning your powers of observation. You may refer to me as Vie, although I don't understand human's insistence that all things must have names" she replied, her voice never wavering.

"Bulma, you've been in stasis a long time. We need to tell you everything that's happened, and quickly" the arachnoid boy said quietly, the scratch marks she left on his face were bleeding slightly and contrasted his dark fuzzy face sharply.

"Medon has done a lot of damage. You may be un-repairable but we have to try" Vie said softly, approaching Bulma. As she neared Bulma shied away but Vie gently took hold of her hand and began to examine it, her small fingers gently but firmly pulling Bulma's hand.

"What are you talking about" Bulma demanded, snatching her hand away, "I was just with that cow thing and we were escaping! He put me in a pod but I went back for Vegeta, then he...then he…." But the words choked in her throat. _Then he tried to kill me_.

"None of that was real" the arachnoid boy said quietly, resting his furry limb on her knee as his six beady eyes met hers.

"What are you talking about" Bulma choked, her voice barely above a whisper.

"Do you remember fighting in the arena?" Vie asked, "Do you remember sitting in the infirmary with Vegeta?"

Bulma tried to think. She tried to pick out when she had been in the arena but everything was mashed together. The harder she tried to remember the more she forgot. "I can't remember" Bulma admitted quietly.

"Look into my eyes" Vie commanded, standing before Bulma but despite Bulma sitting on the floor Vie just barely met her height.

As Bulma gazed into Vie's eyes the world around her melted away into nothingness. Her muscles refused to obey and Bulma found herself paralyzed. _What's going on?_ She cried out in her mind. Her brain whirled, trying to think, trying to regain control.

"Don't fight me Bulma. Just relax," Vie's voice called out in the void, her lips never moving.

Then suddenly they were in the arena again. Bulma was finally able to find her strength and lift herself to her feet. She could see the crowds in the stands, but despite all their open mouths they never made a sound. _What's happening?_ Turning Bulma came face to face with the monster from before. Screaming she turned to flee but her limbs refused to move.

"Stop fighting me Bulma. Just look. Just remember"

Swallowing her fear Bulma turned to face the monster. She realized that the arachnoid boy was there too, his fangs biting into the monsters neck. Neither moved. Both seemed to be frozen in time. Even the drops of blood that were squirting from the monsters neck were frozen in place as they streamed from the monsters open wound. Lookng up she saw Vegeta in his cage, his chest frozen mid-breath. Turning Bulma saw the other cage and the girl inside. As her hair clung to her face the tears were frozen on her cheeks.

"Vie?" Bulma realized in surprise, her hand clutching her mouth as she gasped in horror.

"Yes Bulma, I watched you kill my brother."

"I had no idea! I swear. He was killing Vegeta, I couldn't-" Bulma cried out but Vie cut her off sharply.

"I am aware."

Before Bulma could continue the scene melted away. The sand seemed to flow into an unseen drain like water in a tub and a white tile floor was revealed. The walls of the arena closed in around her until they formed a small square room. As she turned the monster and the arachnoid were gone but Vegeta stood before her. In the doorway stood the evil cow, preparing to haul her away. Vegeta was mid fall and Bulma almost reached forward to catch him. As she raised her gaze she could see the arachnoid on the bed next to Vegeta, and Vie curled in a ball on the bed next to him.

Then suddenly the scene began to move. Vegeta fell to the floor and the evil cow grabbed her. As she fought to free herself she was hauled out into the hallway where a flame red fist flew toward her face and the world melted away around her. Suddenly Bulma was standing on her feet rather than being held in that creature's arms, her cheek tingling from the memory of being struck.

"What was that?" Bulma wondered aloud, her mind whirling.

"That was Medon." Vie's voice rang out, "this is where she took hold of you. When you were unconscious all she had to do was look into your eyes and relay her signal to your brain. In the back of the human eye there is a pathway straight to the brain."

"The optic nerve" Bulma replied.

"Through that pathway she can configure certain neurons to await her command. Then from anywhere she can send her signal and your brain will obey."

Reaching up to rub her forehead Bulma tried to understand. Frustrated she gave a dismissive flick of her wrist, her head already pounding. "Where's Vegeta?" Bulma demanded, her patience at its end.

"He is still deep within Medon's clutches. You must understand, Saiyans spend very little time sleeping and so they do not dream. His brain will be unable to differentiate between the world Medon has trapped him in and the world around him" Vie said solemnly, her eyes avoiding Bulma's gaze. "I fear even you may not be able to show him the light of reason."

"Well dammit I can try!" Bulma nearly shouted, slamming her fists on the ground in a sudden rage. Hauling herself to her feet she stormed to a nearby stack of saiyan armor and yanked it on. As she adjusted the chest plate she froze, her mind suddenly making a connection she did not see before. Slowly turning she caught Vie's eyes with hers and stared for a long time.

"How do you know so much about Medon," Bulma questioned, her skin tingling with goose bumps as a dark seed of suspicion sprouted in her mind.

With a sigh Vie replied, "My sire is the offspring of her sire."

"Sire…offspring…" Bulma muttered, her mind putting the pieces together. The realization hit her like a train. "Your father is Medon's brother?"

"Yes. When Vegeta and the Icejins captured her planet and kidnapped her and her parents my father, her brother as you say, was off world. He had traveled to an ally planet to seek their aid." Vie explained, her small body barely the height of Bulma's legs.

"Where is your father now?" Bulma asked, the suspicion still rooted in her mind.

"He is a king now. And he is here, determined to destroy Vegeta after Vegeta strangled my mother."

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"It isss time" the lizard hissed, his forked tongue sliding between his sharp teeth. Around him a group of meuhvache worked hastily to carry out his orders. They had taken great care to move everything into place, but the precautions had left the crowd impatient and agitated.

_This will be a ssshow they won't ssssoon forget,_ he chuckled to himself. To his right stood the meuhvache who had helped him coordinate this particular round. The haunting look in his eyes gave no indication that he felt any remorse for what was about to befall his kin, his own brother. To his left stood Medon, the little princess remained as still as a statue as she always did. Her lifeless eyes gazes onward but he knew she saw nothing. Today dark circles traced her eyes, evidence of her effort to keep the saiyan's mind under control.

The events of previous hours had nearly drained the life from Medon, and only by putting the Saiyan and his mate in cryostasis were they able to spare Medon's life.

_He's too strong_ she had whispered, leaving them to watch with baited breath as blood began to fall from her eyes like tears. The effort of maintaining the hold over the saiyan had caused sections of her brain to rupture, the blood pouring fourth from her eyes and ears. A quick injection had put the saiyans brain to sleep, allowing them to safely induce cryostasis. The human woman was just as much trouble, her mind constantly questioning and her reasoning tearing down the walls Medon built in her mind. Attempting to keep them both under her control at once proved to be too much for Medon, when she wrestled one into compliance the other attempted to break free. While tending to a spike in Vegeta's brain activity the human's neurons managed to convey their messages to her muscles and even though her mind still wondered Medon's maze her body walked the halls of the arena before smashing an entire tech room to pieces and killing the meuhvache that tried to detain her.

In an attempt to conserve her energy and strength Medon had built but one maze for the minds of the human and saiyan to wonder, as a scientist would put two rats in one maze. By keeping them in different parts of the maze Medon had hoped to corral them both into submission but their consciousnesses had reached out to each other, small wispy tendrils of thought that wound around each other and broke through Medon's illusions.

After careful deliberation they had decided to release the human from Medon, for the saiyan would require all of her concentration during this match.

"Everything is in position," a meuhvache reported, "We have detained the human female as well as the arachnoid and the-"

"I will wait no longer" a voice rumbled from the hallway. Closing his eyes the lizard took several deep breathes before responding.

"King Aracono, patience is a virtue. The sssaiyan has increasssed revenue tenfold, with more and more coming to obssserve as each moment passssssesss. Once the universsse growsss tired of him you may do with him what you will. But not a moment sssooner."

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For once, Bulma did not struggle against her captors. When they burst into the room she had every intention of fighting them tooth and nail but Vie stayed her hand.

_They will take you to Vegeta_, Vie had whispered in her mind.

As they were marched down the empty hallway Bulma vaguely wondered what would await them. _Round 4_, she thought to herself, _when will I ever escape this hell hole?_

Her thoughts were brought to an abrupt end as her captors stopped short, almost causing Bulma to walk straight into them. Without warning the hands of her captors shot out and grabbed her, two securing her arms behind her back while a third strapped something to her chest. At first Bulma refrained from struggling but a sense of dread shot through her as they attached a metallic device to her chest. She could not feel it's touch through her saiyan armor but she still felt its pressure, squeezing her chest until her heart hammered loudly in protest. Her captors proceeded to lock her arms into the device. Two cold metallic cuffs clenched around her wrists and held them firmly behind her back, pulling so sharply that her shoulders protested painfully.

As Bulma desperately pulled at her restraints her captors shoved her forward. Stumbling, Bulma fought as a surge of panic threatened to overwhelm her. Her lungs expanded and contracted sharply, making her breathes ragged and unfulfilling, leaving her light headed. Bursts of pain shot through her shoulder before exploding in her muscles, as a firework shoots through the night sky before exploding among the stars.

Sparing her no mercy her captors continued to shove her forward, grabbing her by the shoulder every so often to keep her from falling on her face. Although the remainder of the walk may have been a few meters it felt as though Bulma had walked miles. Beads of perspiration rolled down her forehead and stung her eyes as her lungs desperately tired to quench her body's need for air. The muscles in her shoulders were cramped and blood trickled down her wrists were the cold metal bit into her flesh.

Bulma was only vaguely aware of the sound of her captors throwing open a door in front of them before they grabbed her by the hair and flung her through the air. Reflexes tried to jerk her hands in front of her to break her fall but as the cuffs dug deeper into her skin as she collided with the ground, rolling a few times to lessen the impact. Dirt and dust stabbed at her eyes, invaded her nostrils and defiled her throat. As she rolled to a stop she became aware of a loud buzzing in her ears.

Blinking the dirt from her eyes Bulma gazed upwards, her sight filled with the alien races of the universe all staring down at her. Their mouths were open wide and their arms outstretched as they cheered, jeered and yelled.

With an involuntary groan she managed to sit upright, her feet stretching out before her. Before she could find the strength to stand the ground beside her erupted in a cloud of dust. Bulma squeezed her eyes shut and turned her head away. After a few moments she opened her eyes again and turned to inspect the disturbance. Beside her lay the arachnoid, his numerous legs flailing as he tried to regain his composure. To her other side she heard the faint sound of footsteps and turned to watch Vie approach.

The young girl was likewise bound with a metallic device strapped across her chest with her arms secured behind her back. The front of the device was adorned with a green LED display with a series of - what Bulma presumed to be - numbers. Leaning closer and squinting her eyes against the glare Bulma watched as the number on the far right began to change. It continued to change until it reached the number it had started from at which point the number to the left of it decreased by 1.

_It's a timer_, Bulma relized with horror, _it's counting down!_

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Hey you just read this and this is crazy, but here's my story so rate it maybe?


	15. Ding, Round 4

Hey there groovy people of the internet! I just wanted to take a moment and thank you all; All of you who have stuck with my story and those of you who were kind enough to leave me comments. I admit, I've gotten quite a few negative comments over the last couple chapters - mainly people who said they didn't understand the plot and the story - and I was at a bit of a loss. I know I can't please everyone but if my story isn't up to par I want fix it. This is my first story and I want it to be worth reading. But while comments saying my plot was too confusing or that my story wasn't up to par or too forced really stung it's the positive comments from readers that really keep me going. After a couple particularly nice comments I really wanted to write this next chapter, I wanted to produce more material to read for those of you who enjoy reading it. Honestly I can't thank you guys, my readers, enough. You're my inspiration and you're the fuel that's kept the fire in my story going. So groovy people of the internet I thank you with all my heart, and without further ado let's see what Vegeta is up to

**Ding, Round 4**

_The ground shakes, drums…drums in the deep._

Vegeta's eyes shot open, piercing the darkness with his cold black gaze. The vibrations that awoke him from unconsciousness continued to work their way up his legs, his bones quivering. Despite the hammering in his chest his breaths remained calm and measured, his chest rising and falling with calculated precision. For the briefest moment Vegeta felt as though he was floating blissfully through water, unable to distinguish up from down. But soon enough he felt the pressure of his body weight upon his heels and knew he was standing upright, the support of solid metal pressed against his back.

Straightening he felt the tips of his spiked hair graze the top of his confinement. Reaching forward his knuckles collided another wall of solid metal before he could fully bend his elbows. With a snort Vegeta let his arms fall to his sides. Taking a deep breath to steady his muscles he bent his elbows slightly and proceeded to rotate his arms upwards, bringing them slightly out to the side before angling them upward and tucking them in front of his chest. Placing both palms on the wall in front of him he braced his back on the wall behind him and in one explosive moment he pushed with all his might.

With a satisfying _groan_ the metal _snapped_ loudly as the wall before him collapsed forward. The sudden appearance of light blinded Vegeta and he threw up an arm to cover his face. Without hesitation he attempted to fling forth his kai, protecting him from any on coming attackers, but the collar around his neck drained his strength away and Vegeta cut off the flow.

With a growl Vegeta lowered his arm, squinting slightly in the bright light. The arena sprawled out before him, the cheers and jeers of the crowd crashing over him as a wave crashes over the sand. Stepping from his confinement Vegeta cast his eyes over the field before him, searching for a foe. As he closed his eyes to blink Vegeta sucked in a deep breath, allowing the scents of the world around him to fill his nostrils as they rushed toward his lungs. The dust in the air tickled the back of his throat and the foreign scents of the crowd threatened to overwhelm his senses. But in the midst of their angst and suspense, he smelt the deliciously bitter taste of fear. As his eyes peeled back from his pupils a speck of motion caught his attention. Dropping his weight into his back heel Vegeta whirled around to face his target.

Mid-way across the field stood a small child, her flame red hair obscuring her face. As his eyes fell upon her a cold sense of dread shoot through him, sinking into the marrow of his bones. Without a sound the child raised her head, her hair falling away from her face in ripples. Recognition crouched on the edge of his mind, dancing across his tongue but never fell into place. As her face leveled her blood red eyes flew open, instantly locking with his; Staring into their depths he felt a sharp tug at his mind, as if someone had sunk a hook through the forefront of his mind and were trying to tear it from his skull. With a snarl Vegeta gripped his forehead with his palm and stumbled back, his eyes squeezing shut.

Instantly the pain subsided and with a fury Vegeta sliced his hand through the air, cutting through an invisible enemy from left to right from shoulder to sternum. As his eyes refocused the child was gone, the sand undisturbed where her feet had stood. With another furious snarl Vegeta whipped around, searching for enemies. _What foul trickery is this?_

Then as he completed his final turn a flash of blue in the distance caught his eye, halting him in his tracks. He felt his eyes strain over the distance but that aqua blue hair was unmistakable. _Bulma_.

His kai collar tethered his ability to fly but it couldn't drain the strength of his muscles, and so on strength alone Vegeta sprinted over the field to cover the distance between them. As he approached the details surrounding her became refined. As his eyes met hers the fear on her face sank deep into his heart and caused his mind to race. His eyes darting around for the source of her distress he quickly located a metallic device strapped to her chest, restraining her arms behind her back. As his eyes locked onto it the interface nearly caused him to lose his footing as shock froze his muscles in place but without effort he was able to catch his balance and continue running toward her. _Those bastards strapped a bomb to her chest!_

As he ran thoughts whirled within his mind, trying to think of how to disable the device. Then, without warning, he lost his footing and fell forward. With a growl he leaned forward intending to perform a forward roll to maintain his momentum. But his foot snagged in the ground and he slammed face first into the dirt. With a disgruntled snort he ignored the laughter that roared from the crowd and gave his leg a sharp tug forward, but the obstruction held firm. Pushing himself up with his arms Vegeta glanced over his shoulder, expecting some sort of rock to be impeding his movement. But as his eyes found his ankle he found not a rock but a grisly black hand protruding from the dirt, holding his ankle firm.

As if it sensed his gaze a black figure emerged from the dirt, it's black hairy body a stark contrast the bright light that filtered into the arena. As it rose to full height it towered over Vegeta, it's back slightly hunched as its bright orange eyes leered down at him, its pupils black slits that brimmed with pure malicious intent. It's two cone-like ears protruded from the top of its head, ringed with bright purple stripes that mirrored the purple lips that extended in a devious grin across the width of it's head. Within it bore rows of teeth sharp as daggers, each glistening white in the light. The hair that covered its chest was longer than the hair that covered the rest of its body, with highlights of deep purple that made the mind feel as through it were being sucked into their deep purple depths if you looked too long. To each side thick black arms extended, ending with three large purple claws. As Vegeta's eyes followed the length of the arms he could see no joints, the limbs flowing as freely as a blade of grass in the wind. As it's body cascaded downward it sloped in on itself but for legs or feet it seemed to have none, rather its body sank into shadows and never seemed to end. The monsters arm tightened around his ankle, its claws beginning to dig into his skin.

Thinking quickly Vegeta felt the muscles in his arms bulge as he lifted himself up off the ground, his free ankle kicking out toward the creatures face as his head hung between his arms so he could look down his body at his attacker. From his vantage point the creature looked as though it were upside down, but even from his awkward angle Vegeta watched as the creature bobbed out of the way. Rotating his leg slightly the side and snapping his knee bent he attempted to kick the monster upon the back of his head and yet again the creature merely bobbed out of the way. Before Vegeta could strike out again the creature tightened its grip and whipped its arm around, flinging Vegeta over its head. Without letting go the monster slammed Vegeta into the ground, dust billowing out from beneath Vegeta's body, before it proceeded to pick him up again and fling him across the field.

_What's he doing? Bulma cried aloud, her companions equally troubled. Before them Vegeta was being flung around by a meuhvache painted with the colors of the rainbow and although Vegeta had struck out with savage kicks he had missed completely, off by an embarrassing margin. Around them the crowd roared with laughter, enjoying the sight of the Saiyan prince being so easily humiliated. Off to the side Medon stood in the sand, motionless other than a turn of her head to watch Vegeta fly over the field and into the arena wall._

"_Clever girl", Vie whispered, her gaze intense as watched the proceedings. Bulma gave her a questioning glance as she raised an eyebrow. "Medon has taken root in his mind, but not completely. What he sees and what we see are not the same, but he still hears the roar of the crowd and he can still look upon your face. Vegeta's mind is half in our world and half in hers." With worry eating at her heart she turned her attention back to the field. _

Vegeta struggled to his feet, shaking the rubble from his collision with the wall off his shoulders. Sparing a glance at Bulma he drew strength from her presence. The creature bobbed side to side as a snake does when it slithers over the sand, slowly advancing. Without waiting for it to approach Vegeta rushed forward to met it on the field. Swinging his fists with increasing speed and ferocity Vegeta struck out at the creature but just as before the creature bobbed out of the way, his fists never reaching their mark. With each failed attack the creature bobbed a little closer, causing Vegeta to retreat backward to keep it from growing too close. As his frustration welled within him Bulma's scream pierced his ears, causing his arm to falter.

Seizing Vegeta's lapse in attack the creature shot forward, smashing Vegeta upside the head with its thick black arm, sweeping Vegeta from his feet. Vegeta wheeled through the air, slamming his shoulder into the ground as he rolled to a stop in the dirt.

Risking his safety Vegeta raised his head and sought out Bulma. At the end of the field she was edging away from an approaching meuhvache that was reaching toward her with a strange intensity. A snarl ripped from Vegeta's throat as he jumped to his feet, his body leaning forward as he raced toward her. A black blur in his peripheral vision announced the approach of the mysterious shade creature. In a desperate move Vegeta launched himself from his left foot, twisting his body so that he arced through the air to the right while still continuing forward, attempting to stay out of arms reach. But the creature seemed to have no limit to its reach as its arm shot forward, extending through the arm and grabbing Vegeta's wrist as he whirled by. As the creature held his wrist firm Vegeta felt his body continue to spin out of control. As his body spun forward he felt his arm pop from it's socket then twist several times before Vegeta finally met the ground. With a groan of anguish, pain shot through Vegeta's body with every breath.

_As Vegeta's moan reached her ears Bulma's eyes filled with tears. "NO YOU STUPID COW" she screamed, "HELP VEGETA!" She had screamed it at the cow-creature before but it refused to listen, ignoring her pleas and continuing to advance toward her. The cow was strangely familiar to her, he was not her tormentor but she felt just as intimately connected to him although not in a bad way. As the cow reached forward and grabbed her, a crippling pain shot through her body. Her scream ripped its way from her throat, increasing in intensity and pitch as the pain that coursed through her body increased in magnitude. The cow released her and she fell to the ground, the sand running red with blood. Desperately trying to catch her breath she saw the blood was not hers, but the cow creature's. It's had was now covered in terrible burns where it had grabbed the device strapped to her chest. It had stumbled backward with a bellow and Vie had thrown her a quick glance before returning her attention to the field. _

_Bulma's body sagged against the ground as tremors of pain coursed through her. The words "pressure trigger" and "electric shock" drifted through her mind but her thoughts were too scattered to connect them. Allowing her head to fall to the side she saw Vegeta on his knees before a multicolored cow-creature, painted up like a circus clown. Vegeta's arm was twisted at a nauseating angle as blood tricked from shoulder where bone had broken through his flesh. Her stomach lurched at the sight, her own pain forgotten. Rolling herself onto her stomach she shoved herself upright, stumbled toward Vegeta at first then breaking into a run as soon as she was confident her legs would support her. _

_The world flew by her as she sprinted over the field, but when Vegeta was only 20 yards away the device on her chest beeped in unison with the collar around Vegeta's throat and both released an audio zap as Bulma screamed and Vegeta roared._

The pain that coursed through his body from his neck seemed to collide with the pain radiating from his shoulder, doubling them in strength and crippling his thoughts as pain overwhelmed his senses. The creature held his wrist firm and its disgusting purple grin grew as it wretched his wrist around, driving the pain deeper. Dark splotches exploded before his vision, the world around his spinning as his mind threatened to dive into the painless pools of unconscious darkness. A relief from his pain would have been welcome, but his saiyan pride held firm and refused. _A saiyan never gives in, never gives up, and we never let anyone take us alive._

Baring his teeth in a snarl Vegeta pulled his right leg forward so his right foot rested flat on the ground as his left hand curled into a fist. Then pushing all of his weight against his right foot he flung his body to the left, colliding with the shadow creature. With a satisfying _pop_ his shoulder finally returned to its place and the pain radiating from his shoulder ceased. Whipping his right arm around he attempted to wrap it around the monster. _What foul trickery is this?_

Where Vegeta's mind anticipated resistance from the creatures form he met none, instead his arm seemed to be absorbed into the creatures body before coming to a halt part of the way through. Where Vegeta's skin brushed against the creatures hairy body he felt not long stringy hair as it had but rather short bristles. As Vegeta's nostrils flared in response to his growing confusion his nose was filled with the scent of meuhvache, one he knew well now, and not the foreign scent this creature should reek of.

The creature seized Vegeta's momentary confusion to pry itself from his grasp and strike out at him again, but as it did Vegeta allowed the strike to land. Where claws should have raked his flesh he felt nothing but a faint wind. Launching himself back a few stride Vegeta attempted to buy himself time to process the information. _That child…that red head…her name…Me-_

A sharp _zap_ cut the air and Vegeta's muscles betrayed him. Flailing in agony he felt himself falling. As he collapsed to the ground the dust that billowed forth covered him like a blanket, as if it were trying to tuck him into the earth. Clenching his teeth Vegeta pulled his mind deep within himself, waiting for the electric shock to subside. _They're trying to keep me from the truth_, he thought to himself as another wave shot through his nervous system before exploding across his skin. _Medon_. The word fit into his mind like a puzzle piece falling into place. The electric shocks ceased and the dust around him settled. _Those eyes…those blood red eyes._

Vegeta slowly pulled himself to his feet, the shadow creature gone from sight. He concentrated on the ground before his feet, realizing how the grains of sand and clots of dirt seemed to all blend together, his eyes unable to distinguish one from another. _The answer is always in the details_, Frieza's voice rang in his mind. Closing his eyes Vegeta found himself once again sitting beside the icejin, watching the games from high above the arena walls. _Whenever you feel your mind has betrayed you always pay attention to the details_, the icejin cooed, _watching the two opponents fight invisible enemies while colorful meuhvache paraded around the field_. _You saiyans have such a poor grip on the difference between reality and fantasy_, Frieza said lazily, his eyes following the absurd movements of the warriors on the field. _Never allow yourself to be so easily fooled_, Frieza said motioning to the scene bellow. _To force a mind to see what is not there is a trying task alone, but to force it to hear sounds that are absent from the air, to taste and feel what does not exist is near impossible_. Frieza turned to him, fixing his gaze on Vegeta. _Never forget Vegeta, to create such an illusion requires incredible concentration and power that few posses. And those that do will cut corners to lessen the burden on themselves_.

Frieza allowed himself to chuckle, his deep purple lips curling into a devious smile. _Always look at the details, the texture of the world around you is always clear and defined whether you're looking at it or not. But when someone else is controlling what you see they will only refine the texture of the world around you when they know you will be looking, or when they want you to look. Never lose your pride young saiyan, and always pay attention to the details._

Opening his eyes again he noticed how lines had formed among the sand, each grain standing apart from its neighbor as clearly as if it were reality. But it wasn't.

Throwing back his head Vegeta let out a furious roar that echoed throughout the arena. In response several thousand spectators dropped to the arena floor and approached, hatred in their features and vengeance in their eyes.

"N-no! Get out of my head! I already told you! I will not be distracted from this anymore! I won't! It will take more than head games to stop me! You may have invaded my mind and my body, but there's one thing a Saiyan always keeps….HIS PRIDE!"

The words tore themselves from his throat filling the arena and cutting through the apparitions before him like his fists through his enemies. His throat bulged around his kai collar but his furious roar continued, all his anger and hatred expelling themselves into the air from his lungs. His fists clenching he felt his power welling within his abdomen; as it grew he felt it draining into the device around his neck but the device could not drain it as fast as it gathered. Soon every muscle in his body convulsed in a single motion, the air around him swelling with energy as his body exploded in a golden glow. With a loud _crack_ the collar around his neck shattered, it's pieces floating in the air around him. Freed from imprisonment his kai swelled, crackling around him. With a final deafening roar his kai surged around him before thundering outward, annihilating everything on contact.

_Fools_, Vegeta thought as his signature smirk haunted his lips.

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Before her the ground exploded with Vegeta's power, knocking her back several hundred feet before she collided with the wall with such force the metallic device around her chest smashed inward. Above her the cow-creature appeared again, seizing the opportunity to remove the device from her chest. Breaking the bonds that held her before throwing the device into the stands. Vie approached and as Bulma watched in a daze the child closed her eyes then in a violent movement, that caused Bulma to flinch, a loud _pop_ signified the removal of Vie's shoulders from her sockets. Wrenching her wrists free she wormed her way out of the device before popping her shoulders back in with an equally audible _pop_.

Unable to contain it any longer Bulma rolled onto her side and was sick, retching up the acidic contents of her stomach over the dirt. The strong arms of the cow hooked her under her armpits and heaved her to her feet. Unable to support herself Bulma sank, but again the cow heaved her upward and placed her on its back. Casting her eyes she saw the arachnoid boy, still strapped to the metallic device. To her dismay only 2 numeric digits remained on the interface. The boy refused to meet her gaze; his own focused on the ground. The cow reached out to him but the arachnoid stumbled backward.

_NO_, Bulma tried to scream but her throat burned and only an indistinguishable croak escaped her lips. As she reached for him she lost her balance and began to slide toward the ground. The cow stopped advancing and reached back to grab her. The arachnoid boy took the opportunity to dart back, retreated along the wall but putting distance between them.

After he put distance between them the boy turned and looked back, the interface only displaying a single numeric number. The boy's strange fanged mouth formed the words, "_listen for the lava_." Then he closed his eyes and with a loud _ping_ the metallic device emitted a loud _zap_ and the arachnoids limbs began to flail uncontrollably, foam flying from his mouth.

_NO_, Bulma tried to scream as the cow creature turned and ran in the other direction, fleeing from Vegeta's super saiyan rage and rushing toward a now open door. As the darkness of the entry way swallowed them her gaze was still locked on the still body of the arachnoid boy, tears filling her eyes and spilling over her cheeks. _Goodbye Poeh_, Vie murmured in Bulma's mind. _Poeh…so he's not just a bastard after all_, Bulma thought sadly to herself.

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Freed from the confinements of his kai collar Vegeta has exploded into super saiyan form. Will it be enough to finally escape? Find out next time on Dragonball Z!


	16. A Trip Down Memory Lane

Hazzzah and hello groovy people of the internet! Well there's been a lengthy intermission between chapters and I apologize my dear readers! I owe a huge thanks to lilpumpkingirl who is helping me beta read this story and the quality of this chapter has improved greatly if I do say so myself. This chapter was written to hopefully answer any and all questions and gaps from previous chapters. So hang on to your hats ladies and gents it's gonna be a bumpy ride!

**A Trip Down Memory Lane **

Long jagged cracks spread across the walls around them as they rattled and shook, scars from Vegeta's onslaught in the arena they just left behind. Beneath her the cow-creature raced to outrun them, always just a step ahead of the chunks of ceiling that were raining down around them. Vegeta's roars of rage filled Bulma's ears like a horrible nightmare come to life. The kind of nightmare where no matter how hard you try you can't even scream. Her eyes watered as clouds of dust spewed from the crumbling ceiling. Cries of agony joined Vegeta's rage in a symphony of death and despair, doors holding firm as the walls collapsing inward and thus ending their prisoners long tortured life at the arena.

Bulma clung tightly to the cow-creature's upper torso, her legs wrapped tightly around its horse-like belly. Bulma had ridden horses in her young days but this was entirely different. Perched on a meuhvache's back she encountered an upper torso where a horse's neck would have been. Like a centaur from myths, the cow-creatures – meuhvache Poeh had called them once- had the body of a horse and the upper-half of a man, only their short muscular necks held the broad head of a cow. Bulma had once thought their short fur might have been soft, but as they galloped down the hallway the fur rubbed roughly against Bulma's cheek as she pressed herself into the back of the meuhvache's shoulders. Her breath hitched as Vie tightened her grip around Bulma's waist, her small face buried in Bulma's back as her long red hair snapped at their air behind them like a fistful of angry serpents.

Bulma's muscles tightened as the meuhvache swerved abruptly, narrowly missing a large chuck of ceiling that crashed to the ground beside them. Dust billowed from the gap in the ceiling, stinging her eyes and filling her lungs. As the stone crashed into the ground the floor began to give way, cracks and crevasses shooting out in every direction as if the chuck of rock had broken through a pane of glass. The meuhvache's hand-like feet slapped against the crumbling floor, scrambling to maintain its balance. The bitter taste of dust coated Bulma's tongue as she desperately tried to fill her lungs with air while the ceiling above them continued to rain down upon their heads.

Closing her eyes she wrapped her arms around her head, her hands clinging to her hair as her wrists rested over her ears. _"Listen for the lava,"_ Poeh had once told her, a moment in time that felt like ages and lifetimes ago. Instantly the distant memory of them in that cold room, of her despair and desolation, brought fresh tears to her eyes. Poeh had helped her remain strong. He had helped her remain sane and now he was gone. _Why?_, she thought as she felt the tickle of a tear that slid down the side of her nose, _Why did he have to die?_

The rumble of the blood in her veins vanquished all other sounds, all the destruction and all the death, and instead filled her ears with the sound of her strength. "My heart hasn't given up", she whispered under her breath, "Neither can I."

Bulma could not be certain how much time had passed while she listened to the blood flow through her veins but she was awoken from her reprieve as the meuhvache slowed to a stop beneath her and she felt Vie's arms slacken around her waist. The smell of astringents and other strange chemicals made her nostrils burn and her mouth go dry, suddenly making her very dizzy. _This place…_

Lowering her arms to brace herself against the meuhvache, Bulma opened her eyes. At first the room was slightly blurry, it's stark whiteness washing away any details. But as her eyes adjusted the room sharpened into focus. A short metallic table occupied the center of the room. Surrounding it were several monitors, all of them powered down, as well as a few small tables piled with surgical equipment. As her eyes scanned the room a swatch of red painted her peripheral vision, drawing her attention. At the far end of the room stretched a wall of glass, separating them from the room beyond whose only occupants were a small cot and a door leading off to a wash closet.

But it was not the wall or even the room beyond that caused Bulma's stomach to sink like a stone. The glass wall was covered in blood, a gruesome painting of crimson and flesh. The very sight of it made Bulma's skin crawl, the taunt and scarred skin of her back burning. Then recognition set in. Bulma's gaze fell to the small table before her, flashes of herself writhing in pain as the heat melted away the cells of her skin as her screams of pain filled her own ears. Fresh screams echoed the screams in her memories, and suddenly Bulma found herself falling through her memories.

_Before her eyes the blood seemed to pour off her arms in an endless fountain, pouring onto her legs and dripping from between her toes. Screaming Bulma frantically flung herself backwards, falling from the cow-creature as she tried to stop the blood from falling. Every attempt she made to cease its flow resulted in more blood than before, whether it was hers or not she could not tell. As she looked up, desperate for somewhere to go she could only see the walls closing in around her, trapping her, threatening to drown her in blood…_

"_Bulma!" a voice called, reaching out to her amidst the chaos. Bulma tried to reply back but every attempt only filled her mouth with more blood, gagging her on it's metallic taste. Like watching the monster Frieza destroy all her friends, all Bulma could feel was the panic coursing through her body. The only sounds she could make where the ones inside her head and no matter how hard she tried she couldn't even scream_. _But the voice called out to her again and Bulma focused on the voice, forcing every thought to coalesce until the sound of her own name was all that echoed through her mind._

_Bulma_, she heard her own voice whisper in her mind, _Bulma Briefs_. Somehow hearing her own name gave her strength. If there was one thing in the world that she was, it was Bulma Briefs.

As her mind acclimated itself back to reality Bulma become increasingly aware of a pressure underneath her knees and behind her shoulders, her head propped up against all laws of gravity. Opening her eyes, she was lifted into the air as she saw the kindred face of mama moo looking down at her, her large eyes glistening.

"Mama moo," Bulma whispered, a smile pulling at her cheeks.

"Her name is Voel, and she is friend to Anevi" Vie announced, sliding gracefully down from Anevi's back. Her small white dress fluttered behind her, catching momentarily against the cow-creature's rough hide before being tugged along by Vie's momentum. For the first time since meeting her Bulma truly saw her for the first time. Her flame red hair was more tamed than the creature that tormented Bulma's conscious, flowing around her face to frame it with a look of childish innocence. Despite Vie's short stature and childish appearance Bulma could see that many of her features were carved from hardship. She had deep bags under her crimson red eyes and Bulma found herself wondering if the girl ever slept. Her lips were cherry red, scared with deep gauges as if her lips had gone a very long time without water. Her cheekbones pressed against her skin, nearly forming hollows on either side of her face, _When was the last time she ate?_

"Voel," Bulma repeated as mama moo bowed her head slightly, her broad face softening. Turning away from the blood stained wall Voel gently placed Bulma on her feet, careful to avoid touching Bulma's back. As Bulma's feet found the floor cold shivers raced up her legs, even through her saiyan boots the cold of the floor bit at her. Goosebumps spread across her back as she shuddered, the memory of the chill gnawing at her back.

Restraining the urge to support herself Bulma allowed her body to drift downward, using the wall to slow her decent. Pulling her knees to her chest she wrapped her arms around them and placed her forehead between them. With a moan Bulma began to cry without constraint. She cried for herself, she cried for Poeh, and she cried for all those that had died in this horrible place.

As Bulma took several trembling breaths to stem the tide of tears she felt a gentle pressure on her side. Raising her head and looking over she found Vie at her side, sitting with her legs stretched out before her. Vie was staring at her hands, as if she was uncertain, then with deliberate slowness she raised her wrists to her ears and held them there. With a sob Vie shivered as tears fell from her eyes, running down her nose and over her lips before dangling precariously beneath her chin. As her tears began to stain her little white dress Bulma felt an overwhelming sense of sadness radiating from Vie.

Bulma's mind was flooded with emotions and memories; _faces flashed before her eyes as the taste of bitter ashes filled her mouth, her body filled with foreign emotions as the world before her eyes danced. Colors began to blend, swirling in a chaotic vortex, forming shapes and shadows that didn't truly exist. _

_The white wash of the room filled with color, a deep red hue blossomed above her as dark mahogany formed a crib around her mind's eye. The small pale white hands of a baby were reaching out in front her. A similar face gazed lovingly down at her bearing a toothy grin, the sight made her heart swell with joy. Then a flash of lightning, blindly bright. The room grew dark and grim. Around her the wooden crib crumbled as hard stone took its place. A harsh wail filled the memory, one of confusion and pain. Above her the familiar face was twisted, filled with anger and malice. Shouts permeated through the wails, fighting to be heard. _

When fear threatened to consume her mind the color swirled again, the twisted face dissolving, her fear receding as it left her heart racing.

_The warm glow of torches illuminated a different memory. Stone pillars rose high around her, a vaulted ceiling loomed so far above it was nearly entirely consumed by shadow. The stone pillars were inlaid with ornate gold decorations, figures of warriors in fight atop of winged beasts' midflight. The flickering torchlight licked the golden murals, giving life to the stories they told. Raised voice drifted through the vast room, venom seeping from their words. "We must obey. We cannot win!" The familiar face looked down at her, worry shone in his eyes. The word around the vision swayed as the familiar faced rocked her gently and she felt herself grow calm. "We cannot be ruled by fear" the familiar face above her said quietly, "We must fight for our freedom or die trying." The vision jerked suddenly as foreign hands yanked her small form away from the familiar face and the memory was filled with the terrified wail of a crying baby. "Foolish boy! The icejin will kill us all!" _

As the voices rose they became muffled, the memory swirling once more as a new vision formed.

_The mahogany crib surrounded her once again, the room cloaked in the darkness of night. Confusion swirled in her mind, sleep dulling her senses, as the terrified wail once again pierced the air. Summoned by her cries the familiar face appeared above her, his face bruised and bloodied. The face made a shushing noise and it raised a finger to its lips. But in the distance screams filled the air, rushing through the door and falling upon her infant ears. Fear struck her feeble heart and the wails intensified. With a look of desperation the familiar face clamped a hand down over her mouth. Panic flung her head from side to side, the salty taste of sweat gagged her sensitive taste buds and she felt her small face flush red from the struggle. Removing his hand her screams filled the air once more, the thundering of footsteps growing near. Without warning pain erupted from her chest, the hand of the familiar holding a strange device that he had plunged into her. The memory flickered and the familiar face was gone, yet over her loomed a horrifying monster. Killer. Destroyer. Demon. _

_Saiyan._

The darkness of the room fell over her eyes as the memory came to a swift end. Vegeta? Bulma heard herself wonder. But before she could contemplate what she had seen the colors before her swirled once more and a new vision came to life.

_The twisted familiar face glared down at her, red eyes flashing in the industrial light. "We will not exchange one for the other" a voice declared, "ssshe is sssimply not the sssame," the face above her growled low in its throat, the air quivering with its anger. "They are exactly the same!" the face roared, the veins on its neck bulging with rage. "The one we have isss already trained," the voice hissed, "but perhapsss we can make an arrangement we will both profit from." As its slithering tongue disappeared behind it's razor sharp teeth it drew near, leering down its broad snout at her. "Yesss, perhapsss thisss one could work for us nicely one day…". _

Then the images stopped. Her emotions once again her own as an iron hard barrier dropped in her mind and cutting off her mind from Vie's. Gasping, she slumped forward, her heart racing and her breath labored. Swallowing hard Bulma placed a hand over her heart, as if to make sure it would not burst from her chest. A sense of pity welled inside Bulma, pooling in her stomach and tightening her throat as she tried to comprehend what had just occurred.

"Vie?" Bulma questioned, not daring to look at the child.

"I'm sorry. I did not mean for you to endure that," Vie whispered, as she buried her head in her hands.

"Vie. Those weren't yours, were they? That man, that…face. I've seen it before." Bulma's tongue felt heavy in her mouth as it formed the words, the image of that familiar face fading from her mind even as she tried to grasp it. _Where have I seen it before?_

Before Bulma could finish Vie burst into renewed tears, sobbing loudly as her whole body trembled violently.

"You don't understand!" Vie screamed, her calm demeanor vanquished as she lost control. Her small fists tightening until her knuckles threatened to burst from her skin. "They are my memories, just as they are hers. Medon and I…we're the same person."

Bulma froze, her mind unable to comprehend. Like an ill fitted machine her brain tried in vain to fit the two pieces together, but no matter how Bulma tried to combine them it just did not make sense. _Vie is not the monster that torments me_, Bulma thought to herself,_ I can see the goodness in her eyes._

"No," Bulma said, her voice calmer than her mind, "You are not a monster."

Vie took several shaky breaths before answering. "No, you don't understand. My father, King Aracono, is not my father at all. By blood he is my brother. When he was exiled from his planet he returned, with every intention to take Medon away with him, but it was too late. Vegeta was there, marching his way up the steps of the palace on his way to kill or capture everyone inside. By use of secret passages he got to Medon before Vegeta did. Medon was wailing, her cries echoing throughout the halls. He was not strong enough to fight Vegeta and succeed nor could he calm Medon into silence. He did the only thing he could do; he plunged a syringe into her small body and drew forth her life's blood, extracting her DNA."

"You're a clone?" Bulma was taken aback, _Is that possible_?

Vie paused, her lips quivering as she searched for the right words. With a sigh Vie whispered, "In a sense. The king waited a long time before he brought me into the world. After leaving he traveled to neighboring planets, forging alliances and even taking some by force. It was many years before he became King Aracono, securing his position through a political marriage. But I was not the first clone. My 'brother', the one Vegeta killed in the arena…is technically my brother by blood, but only because he was a clone of the king himself."

Silence filled the room, the buzz of the nearby monitors vibrated in the air around them. As Voel shuffled her wings Bulma jumped, forgetting the two cow creatures were still there.

"You have been through a lot since you've been here Bulma Briefs of Earth, but you do not understand, nor will you ever" Vie spat, her voice laced with anger.

"No, I understand all too well. You don't understand" Bulma said quietly, a strange calm filling her body. "I've watched so many of my friends die right before my eyes. People who were stronger than me, and yet here I still stand."

Taking a deep breath Bulma continued, "Humans only live about a hundred years give or take, mostly take, and so many of us squander it away. When we stand on our planet we seem so big, so significant. But I've watched my planet fade into the distance as I traveled through space. I've stood on alien planets and looked up at their stars, my own sun just a pinpoint of light in the distance. A hundred years? That's nothing. Our sun is over 5 billion years old. Billion! That's 10 million human life times. We're an arrogant species to think so selfishly about our lives. Sure a human can live their life in the pursuit of happiness. Get a job that pays a lot of money, get a big house and have a big family. But who will remember them when they die? Their children sure, and their children's children as well. But somewhere down the line their name will be forgotten and all the accomplishments of their life reduced to nothing. I was like that when I was young. I lived for myself and enjoyed the challenge, because I enjoyed the attention. But then I watched my friends fall like grains of sand before Frieza and I realized: I will remember them and I will remember their sacrifice, but the rest of the planet will not. I will tell my children of their deeds but when my children forget their deeds will be forgotten, their sacrifice in vain. But knowledge, knowledge is forever. I now seek knowledge for the benefit of my species. I seek knowledge that will allow my species to escape from the time bomb that is our sun, that is set to implode less than 5 billion years from now. No, I can't die here. Not before my deed is done."

And with that Bulma stood, shedding all sadness and filling herself with a sense of purpose. Clenching her hand into a fist watched as her skin tightened around her knuckles, and if she squeezed hard enough she could see her veins pulse in rhythm with her heart.

"Let's do this" Bulma declared, her triumphed gaze meeting each of theirs. The two cow just stared, not moved by her words but rather the tone in which she said them. Unable to comprehend her burst of emotion they looked to Vie for guidance. Following their gaze Bulma too looked to Vie, awaiting her response.

For several minutes Vie didn't move, not even to blink. She fixed her eyes on the floor at her feet, and refused to meet their gazes. Then she flicked her eyes upward, meeting Bulma's. Her crimson red eyes locked with Bulma's blue orbs and Bulma felt a tugging sensation in her mind. Before Bulma could react the world around her was pulled away, as if it were being sucked into a vacuum, leaving an empty black void in its wake. Only then did Vie stand, her eyes never leaving Bulma's. In 3 short strides she marched up to Bulma, seemingly at height with Bulma despite her shortness, and without a word she pressed her hands firmly on either side of Bulma's temples and closed her eyes. As soon as Vie's eyelids touched together she vanished before Bulma's eyes, leaving her alone in the empty void.

"Listen to me Bulma," Vie's voice rang out, "I'm going to walk you through your recent memories. I'm going to help you sort out the sequence of events and help you distinguish reality from fantasy. Medon has been trained since infancy to control others minds, but I must know if some part of her can still be saved…for my sake. Please, help me find any clue Medon left behind."

"Ok," Bulma thought aloud, "We'll save her Vie, I promise."

Before Bulma could dwell on it further the blackness around her swirled violently as the sensation of being submersed in water tickled her skin and Bulma found herself instinctively holding her breath. Squeezing her eyes shut, she waited for the swirl of color before her eyes to find shape, wondering what scene would emerge before her. Then she felt a sharp tug at her mind as she opened her eyes, vague recognition settling into her mind. She felt as though she was suspended in liquid, the world before her distorted as if she were looking through glass. Before her stood two reptilian like creatures, dressed in white lab coats as they peered down their snouts at her with their mouths open as if they had been conversing. Between them stood Medon, the small girl glared up at Bulma as she opened her mouth and said, "She's awake."

Goosebumps prickled across Bulma's skin, the base of her skull tingled as fear shot through her mind like an arrow tearing through her brain.

"Fear not Bulma," Vie's reassured her, "It's only a memory."

"Those eyes," Bulma exclaimed, her fear escalading. Medon's blood red eyes seemed to be locked with Bulma's, their piercing gaze looked straight into the very depths of Bulma. Slowly Bulma became aware of a red haze clouding her vision. Glancing around she saw red swirls slicing through the water, tainting it. Looking down Bulma screamed as she saw her hands covered in blood, the blood contaminating the water and making it so thick it stung her eyes and filled her nose. As she screamed air bubbles flew past her face, her precious oxygen escaping. When the oxygen in her lungs ran out she felt the water rushing in, filling her lungs until they burst. The world was spinning. She was drowning. _And those blood red eyes_…

"BULMA!" she heard Vie exclaim, but she was drowning and her ears were filled with water. _So much blood red water…_

Then the darkness of the water before her eyes vanished as a bright whiteness blinded her, burning her eyes as if she had looked out over a fresh snow coated in ice on a sunny morning. Struggling to breath, Bulma took a huge swallow of air, her nostrils flaring as she pulled in as much air as she could, trying to fill her lungs.

"Her hold over you was strong," she heard Vie murmur as Voel nervously stomped a hoof against the metallic floor.

As Bulma opened her eyes and looked up she saw Vie standing over her once more. _She is Medon_, Bulma thought to herself, _But her upbringing has made her different. Her eyes are devoid of hatred and malice. Instead they are full of life. She may have been brought to life as Medon, but she has become Vie._

"It seems she's caused a lot of subliminal interference in your mind. I believe a lot of these memories were created to induce fear in you. Fear of me and of Medon…but why?"

Vie rubbed her chin with 3 delicate fingers for moment then returned her attention to Bulma and once more they dove into Bulma's subconscious.

"That memory was to instill a deep fear. Now focus, what happened next."

_Bulma awoke in a cold sweat, panting heavily and almost in tears. She flung back her sheets and slipped her feet into the fuzzy pink slippers her mother had given her for Christmas the year before._

"Please no!" Bulma cried out, _Please not this again_.

Around her the room vanished, an image of Vie appearing in the darkness. "If you will not show me, then you must tell me."

Taking a deep breath Bulma began, "It was a dream, just a dream. I was home and I was trying to reach my parents. They kept getting farther and farther away while my own dogs chased after me." She paused, a lump forming in her throat, "Oh Kami" she whispered, collapsing to her knees, "They were eating me."

"And you dream of these things often?" Vie questioned.

"No," Bulma shook her head, "Just that once. Well…maybe it was twice…I don't remember."

"Hm," Vie hummed in her throat. "I believe this was also Medon, trying to break your spirit of any hope of going home. Filling you with the sense that those who love you are too far out of reach and those meant to protect you will only try to harm you."

_They tried to break me_, Bulma repeated to herself, _But Poeh wouldn't let them. He helped me understand the power coursing through my veins. My heart beats with purpose, and so while my heart beats as strong as ever I must be strong as well. Poeh was all alone but he had the strength to be strong for himself as well as for me…to be strong for myself is the least I can do for him. I can't let his efforts be in vain…_

"Keep digging." Bulma stated with a jerk of her chin, _let's find something to use against them._

Vie continued onward with obedience, the images coming to life in Bulma's mind with renewed vigor. With a blink of her eyes Bulma found herself back in capsule corp., _But this time I knew I was dreaming._

"Another dream," Bulma said aloud, "Vegeta was in this one."

The memory seemed to fast-forward, the trip down the hall taking only a moment before she found Vegeta before her. He was muttering to himself and she felt herself call his name and she watched as he lifted his head to look at her.

"It's almost as if he's looking right at me," Bulma said with an amused chuckle, admiring Vegeta's coal black eyes.

"Bulma," Vie's voice rang out hesitantly, "I think he was looking right at you…"

"How is that possible?"

"I think…I think this was a moment when Medon lost her grip on your minds. She was trying to control your mind while it was dreaming and it slipped through her grasp. Your mind linked with Vegeta through the hold she had over him, but only for this moment. Look closely at his face."

The longer she stared into his eyes the more convinced Bulma was that Vie was right, _That's the gleam of recognition…_But then Vegeta's gaze flicked away from her, and she fell back into darkness.

Bulma could feel Vie's puzzlement, and Bulma couldn't help but feel puzzled herself. _I wonder if it means anything…a moment of weakness…is that all I need to reach out to Vegeta? If Vegeta's mind can't distinguish fantasy from reality do I need to reach him through Medon's own grasp?_

"It's no wonder Medon lost her grip," Vie mumbled, "your brain is hard to control when it's stimulated."

_Good to know, _Bulma thought with a smirk_. At least I have one weapon._

Without allowing Bulma to dwell on the thought Vie brought forth her next memory, the loud _crash_ of a door making Bulma jump.

As the evil cow creature heaved her into the hallway the memory around her blurred, speeding up as she flew through the air. Then pain burst from her side as she looked up to see the king leering down at her. Around her the memory paused, the king's movements slowing to a stop.

"This image of the king…it's a perfect likeness. He must have been present when Medon was putting you through this…he must have been giving her the orders…" Vie said softly as her voice trailed off into the distance.

"But why?" Bulma asked the air, hoping Vie would hear, "If he wants to save her why is he condemning her to her fate?"

"I cannot say. But I intend to find out" Vie replied, her voice laced with anger.

Bulma felt the memory fading around her, but the feeling that something important was about to happen made her yell out, "STOP!"

The memory paused, fading back into view. Without Vie's aid Bulma began to remember….

"_Father,"_ Poeh had said, addressing the king.

"_You are no son of mine,"_ Bulma felt her mouths form around the words as they emerged from the king's mouth, _"Nothing so disgusting would ever come from my seed"._

"Well this is an interesting statement indeed…" Vie mused, "I have attended several court sessions where he openly declared Poeh as his bastard son. Why would he claim otherwise?"

"Maybe…maybe he didn't want us to try and use Poeh against him?" Bulma realized, the thought troubling. _But did he do it to try to save Poeh or just try to save himself?_

Vie gave no response other than a snort. Without dwelling on the memory further she summoned up the next barrage of images; _Blood was beginning to run down Bulma's chin as each turn of a corner brought on a coughing fit that left her hands soaked with the redness of her life._

Time slowed as the king stopped mid march, his leg still raised while the creature dragging Poeh beside them froze. Glancing over toward Poeh Bulma felt a fresh stab of pain at her heart, her eyes hazing over as tears threatened to spill down her face. _I must be strong…_

"I don't detect any of Medon's work here," Vie announced before softly adding, "his suffering is at an end, he need no longer worry about mortal woes."

Her words did nothing to soothe Bulma's distress. _It's all my fault…_

Without regard to her torment the memory continued, the king dragging her roughly across the floor. _Bulma had taken to looking into doors as they passed; it helped distract her from the pain. They had passed countless empty rooms like the one they had come from, but several more seemed to be infirmaries. But the contents of one room took Bulma's breath away; it was lined from wall to wall with banks of monitors and the sight of it made Bulma's eyes glimmer with hope. But the hope quickly faded as the room grew further and further away._

The memory froze again as Vie giggled, "They certain regret allowing you to see that room."

The sound of her laughter was so startling Bulma completely forgot her own distress. "W-what are you talking about?" _That sound_, Bulma thought, _how could something so innocent and pure exist in a place like this?_

"You'll see soon enough" Vie announced, the laughter gone from her voice as serenity took hold once more.

Then the memory continued its motion; _They came to an abrupt halt outside a metal door, identical to all the others that lined the hallway. The king tossed her inside effortlessly, shutting the door with a loud__thunk. Bulma allowed the coolness of the floor to draw the heat from her battered body as she fought to catch her breath. With each inhale her ribs bit painfully at her side, but she was growing accustomed to the pain._

_A soft__tap__drew Bulma from her brief reprieve as her head fell to the side, looking for the source of the noise. Before her, not even a foot away, was the little red headed girl from before. Her blood red eyes stared down at Bulma, devouring her under their gaze. _

"Make it stop!" Bulma cried out, a feeling of immense pressure pushing down on her, the same sensation of diving too deep in a pool. Her ears hurt, the pressure pushing inward as if two sharp fingers were trying to force their way into her brain. _Those blood red eyes…_

The memory receded in a flash of blinding white light, and Voel's worried face appeared over her. The cow creature wasted no time in scooping Bulma into her arms and cradling her against her chest. The pressure on her ears and mind faded away, leaving a dull ache in their absence.

"Her hold over you is stronger than I feared…" Vie muttered to herself, running a hand through her hair. "We cannot continue, lest we risk your mental stability. To turn you raving-mad would not help our predicament."

"No," Bulma declared. "I can't run away anymore. It's time I stand and fight!"

"As you wish" Vie said solemnly.

"W-wait," Bulma stammered, realizing something in the room wasn't right. Glancing around she discovered someone was missing, "Where's Anevi?"

\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/

Anevi thundered down the hallway. His long stride carried him through the maze of stone walls and torture chambers, the sounds of desperate fists banging on doors orchestrating his journey.

"Let Vie and Bulma work out Medon's mind games," he snorted as the thoughts passed through his mind, "Voel will watch over them, to beat this game I need to beat its boss."

The worst of the devastation seemed to have passed while the damage it wrought was strewn across the floor, huge chunks of ceiling alongside collapsed walls, a river of blood flowing freely from the crushed occupants of unfortunate rooms. _No time_, he thought to himself as guilt tugged at him, willing him to turn around and help those who survived. _I must end Medon's tyranny before she lets him tear the arena down from over our heads._

The clash of battle guided his way, always turning toward the loudest sounds. _The saiyan is in combat, but who is he fighting? King Aracono? My brother…_

Mid-step his foot caught a stray stone and slipped from under him, his other legs barely able to catch his weight as momentum drove his body downward. _I must focus on the task at hand._

_If only I had my bombs_, he cursed aloud, _if only they had not been taken from me…_

Their design was flawless, the plan perfectly executed. Once set they could only be disarmed manually. The bombs required sacrifice and that was their secret. Once set they could only be disarmed by someone who loved the arena enough to give their life for it. _Who would give their life for this pit of despair?_ The bombs coursed with free flowing current, current that would gladly leap to anyone foolish enough to grab it, current enough to stop the heart dead. But they knew…_Medon got to me first_, a small silver dart, a dose of poison to knock him unconscious and he was hers. I should have known…that boy, that poor archnoid boy didn't have to die. He was willing to risk his life for each of the three they had strapped bombs to but he had grabbed the one closest to him. The shock was not what it once had been, it did not stop his heart the way it should have and instead he had to live with the guilt.

He had been around Medon long enough to know her tricks and once you knew it was easy to see, like any magic trick. Medon was the master of manipulation. Using a limitless imagination she could conjure up nightmares worse than your darkest fears, turning you against yourself. But _one thing_ was beyond her grasp, _one _weakness, _one_ last hope.

_One thing…_then a slip of his foot and he let out a snort of anger, _I shouldn't think so much. I must focus._

_I shouldn't think so much. I must focus_….the thought a foreign dagger in his mind. Slowing to a halt he looked around, suspiciously eyeing the hallway for intruders.

"This isn't right…" he muttered under his breath, clenching his knuckles as he tried to think.

_The archnoid boy did not have to die. The child's bomb was never set to go off. What does that mean? Could it be- _

Above him the ceiling collapsed with a deafening _crack_, narrowly missing him as he dove to one side. _No, can't be distracted…must think…think of the girl. The saiyan. What is it all for? Does he only want-_

Beneath him the floor caved in on itself, his feet trapped within its gapping mouth. _No. No. I must not fall victim to her fantasies again…no…_

With a final loud _crack_ the floor completely gave way as it dropped his bleeding form into a pit of darkness. Struggling to his feet he tried to think, tried to remember, tried to forget.

A _snort_ from the darkness drew his attention. Dread seized his heart as his stomach dropped like a stone, his tongue turning to lead in his mouth as his lungs held their breath.

_Brother? No…not anymore._

The face that emerged from the darkness was the face of his brother from a distance past. _No_, this can't be happening. But it was, and before him his brother crept from the shadows. His legs were slashed from thigh to ankle, layers of muscle and bone exposed to the foul air. His broad chest and back was stripped bare, the lashes of countless whips cleaved his flesh from bone and left a wasteland behind. His mouth foamed as blood dripped from the holes where his teeth had been.

"Brother" the face called, the white of its eyes exposed in fear. "Why didn't you rescue me brother?" it cried, the stumps that remained of its hands waving through the air. "You could have saved me," it screamed, a blood curdling sound that pierced his heart like an arrow made of ice.

_Brother? How could I have let this happen?_

With one last scream his brother collapsed, sliding across the floor in a pool of his own blood, landing before his feet. Dropping down to his knees he scooped his brother up in his arms and cradled him to his chest. "I'm so sorry" he whispered as a tear dropped unseen into the growing pool of blood.

"You should be" his brother cackled, his eyes rolling back into his skull as the stump of a hand punctured Anevi through the eye. Blinded he tried to fling his brother from his arms but the tormented figure held firm. "Save me brother!" it cackled as its mouth opened wide, maggots and worms pouring fourth until the floor was a moving mass of their deathly filth.

When Anevi opened his mouth to scream they poured in. The taste of death and the sensation of the squirming grubs enough to make him retch, the bile catching in his throat where it refused to part as he struggled to breath. Every breath brought forth another lungful of bile, the acid burning at his chest as if someone had shoved a burning torch down his throat while he inhaled.

"Brother" Anevi managed to gasp, the world growing dim before his eyes and with one last plea he begged for the end.

\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/

"Pathetic" Lidev spat, disgust welling in his throat as he looked down at the miserable form before him. At his feet lay his brother, one hand drenched in blood from where he had gouged out his own eye, his breath ragged as he choked on his own bile. The stark white room they had contained his brother in was now stained with his brother's blood._ Is no room in this palace of pain unbloodied…_

As his brother writhed in pain before his eyes he heard him whisper, "brother." Something within Lidev stirred, distant memories of the life they once lived trickling back. The times when they galloped through the fields together, when they rough housed, when they were brothers.

_That time is long gone_, he thought resentfully. _We live in a monstrous world and to survive we must become monsters_. Hefting a blade borrowed from the armory he granted his brother's pitiful last wish and sank the shaft to the hilt in the flesh of his brother's neck, atop the scar where his brother had once taken the blow in his stead.

Beside him Medon stood, watching with lifeless eyes. _Her eyes no longer see_, he knew, _her mind no longer thinks_. Lidev took a step back as his brother's blood flowed outward from his body, flowing the sloping grooves of the tiled floor. Yet still Medon stood, hardly moving but to breath as the blood reached her toes and pooled around her feet. _Her skin no longer feels_, he knew, _her ears deaf to all but those who commanded her_.

Taking her lightly by the arm he lead her from the room, leaving Anevi's lifeless corpse behind. _He almost bested her_, Lidev thought to himself, _he almost escaped her grasp_. Medon fell into step by his side in short measured paces, her face a pale mask of stone, his brother's blood squishing out from between her toes with every step, leaving a trail of bloody footprints in their wake. _Her power over the minds of others is extraordinary_, he thought, _but so easily overturned_. She was a scrawny thing, her skin clinging tightly to her bones, the black clothing she wore hanging off her body loosely. Her lips were bleeding from where her teeth had broken flesh, which often happened when her victims mind's thought too much and threatened to overwhelm her grip on them. _A small log may be a mighty dam upon a stream but it is quick to sink when the floodwaters come rushing down._

He remembered when they had first brought her to the arena. He had still been a young bull back then, filled with youthful fire. She had been a screaming bundle of cloth, toothless with a face blood red from screaming. She had been given to a female meuhvache for caretaking, the only female in the arena to be graced wings – a rare genetic mutation among the species.

He had not seen the girl again for many rotations – rotations of the planet being the only method of telling time - and when she reappeared she looked as she did now, a small child lost in a big world. She had still had fire in her then, fighting every step of the way as her new caretaker (himself) had dragged her from place to place. They were both so full of hate; hate at the world for what had befallen them, hate at themselves for being too weak to prevail over the menace that weighed on them, hate at those who had enslaved them. Lidev had bested his demons, pursuing the strength of the icejin and killing that bastard who had dared to beat him senseless. Medon on the other hand was surrounded by her demons, demons that poked her with sharp needles, demons that kept her on the brink of starvation, demons worse than the ones who go bump in the night.

At first Medon had hated Lidev too, he was her captor the same as the rest. For the safety of arena personal her eyes were bound at all times with a dark rag, tied so tightly it could only be removed with a knife. But once the experiments began she grew more and more distant, the fire in her eyes dwindling to a flicker of flame. At first the experiment was simple – when under attack how long could Medon defend herself. Her attackers spared her no mercy, prisoners of the arena they did everything within their power to kill her. At first she could only hold them at bay for mere moments, barely able to restrain their control over their muscles, but when her strength was depleted she left the test clinging to the fringes of life – beaten bloody by her attackers until Lidev stepped in to end their life. As time progressed her endurance grew, eventually holding them for full rotations, and as her endurance grew her compassion withered. _Kill or be killed. _She began to experiment on her own, learning the limits of her powers that evidently was only limited by her imagination. By the end of these experiments she drove her attackers insane, tormenting them until they ended their own life at which point she walked away unscathed, following Lidev back to her cell like a beaten and broken dog follows his master.

By the second round of experiments she was already mute, dwelling solely in her own mind as the last flicker of flame in her eyes extinguished. These experiments were scientific, what was happening in her brain when she took control of her victim. The explanations were too scientific for Lidev, but his brother studied the results night and day. Her capacity to control numerous minds was only limited to the strength of each mind, she could only maintain control of a single strong rebellious mind when she could otherwise sway hundreds of simple broken minds. It was quickly discovered that when her victim's mind became too active, thinking too much or asking too many questions and therefore engaging more cognitive properties of the brain, she lost her grip on them as the brain expelled her dominion. "_Her one weakness_,_"_ he thought to himself as he walked to back to her cell, "_and that damn human has exposed it to many times for comfort_."

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"_I wonder what flowers look like,"_ Medon thought to herself.

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"There is nothing we can do for him!" Vie cried out, pulling at Bulma's arm with all her might as Bulma made a run for the door. "He has made his choice, we must continue if you want to leave this arena alive!"

"No!" Bulma screamed as she dragged Vie along with her, "I can't let someone else die for me!"

With her back turned to them, Voel slammed the door shut without a word. As Bulma took a sharp breath, ready to curse Voel out but the quivering of the meuhvache's shoulders gave her pause. _Is she crying?_

She was. With a moan Voel collapsed against the door, her body shuddering with every labored breath.

Vie released Bulma's arm and placed her small hand on Voel's shoulder, bowing her head in respectful mourning. Silence engulfed the room as Bulma tried to think. _What do I do now?_

"We must continue," Vie said quietly as she took her hand from Voel's shoulder. "We're almost through your memories, we must be close to finding her weakness."

Without warning the room around Bulma disappeared before she could even blink.

_Her mind was groggy and her head was pounding. Gripping her forehead with a sweaty palm she tried to steady herself. Even though she could feel the coolness of a floor pressed against her back the room seemed to be spinning all around her, colors swirled together as the lines between objects blurred, leaving Bulma nauseous before she could even stand. For the briefest moment she expected to see Capsule Corp come into view before her eyes, but as memories of recent events flooded her mind the harsh white lines of her cell came into view and any hope of Capsule Corp was gone in an instant. Every muscle in her body tingled painfully, as if they had all fallen asleep as her legs so often did when she conducted long experiments in her lab. Like a legion of angry ants the neurons under her skin sent needle sharp pricks of pain to her brain. But as Bulma lay still the angry prickle beneath her skin began to recede and soon she didn't feel them at all._

_Groaning she pushed herself into a sitting position, releasing her forehead to rub her temples. As she sat up she felt the bile rise in her throat and for a moment she feared she might be sick, but the moment passed and after a few shallow breaths she bravely looked up to engage her surroundings. The room was a standard 8x10 cell, with no windows and a lone metal door. Swaying slightly, Bulma stood on shaky legs and staggered toward the door. Leaning forward heavily she gave the handle a hard tug, but when it refused to give she could not say she was surprised._

_Slumping against the wall by the door her eyes found the floor beneath her feet. The stone was perfectly smooth, without so much as a crack or bump from corner to corner. As the stone met the wall it seemed to melt away, seamlessly sloping upward into the concrete-like wall. But as the walls continued their vertical climb they encountered no ceiling, climbing upwards indefinitely until blackness swallowed it whole._

As her eyes gazed upwards into the darkness the door beside her swung open suddenly, two blood red eyes meeting hers and the cow like beast slowly entered the room.

"Lidev" Vie said with disgust, her voice echoing around the fringes of the memory. "This room is conjured from Medon's mind. Somehow your mind took control of your limbs when it wasn't supposed to. The meuhvache that entered the room was not Lidev, your tormentor, but an innocent bystander. You gouged his eyes out before laying waste to an entire computer room. It had the whole arena in an uproar"

"Wh-wwhat?" Bulma stammered, her mind racing, "I gouged his eyes out?" Growing dizzy she held up her hands, blood running down her arms as it stained her pale skin crimson red.

"Bulma!" Vie's voice shouted, drilling into Bulma's ears and piercing her brain. _Oh Kami, my head is about to split open…._

When she opened her eyes again she was staring at the ceiling, Vie's face looming over her as the tips of her fire red hair brushed against Bulma's face. With a _sigh_ Vie's face disappeared from view, the whiteness of the ceiling filling her vision as she groaned. Placing a palm against her forehead she tried to calm the pounding in her skull.

"It's no wonder you escaped her grasp. When your mind gets all worked up like that it's very hard to tell it what to do!" Vie snorted, giving Bulma a nudge with her toe. "I took a peek at the rest of it, Medon certain knows every trick in the book."

"What are you talking about?" Bulma muttered, rubbing her eyes with her palms.

"Your mind took off running, so to speak, but Medon seems to have a very handy trick for reeling you back in. By distracting your brain she can derail your train of thought and bring you back under her control. You probably don't remember it but she filled you with the sensation of being shoved, forcing you to focus on making your way forward. Then the memory of an old lover reined in your outburst enough for her to put your mind back to sleep. From there the arena put in cryostasis, where your body could not do any more harm. Back in the realm of Medon's mind you were 'rescued' by Anevi who was also under her influence."

"Wait…what?"

"Remember when you thought you were escaping? You were in Medon's mind with Anevi"

"Who?"

"Anevi! He's the brother of Lidev, your tormentor. He's a scientist of sorts here in the arena"

"Where?"

"Oh you're hopeless."

Bulma rubbed her temples as she tried to process it all. No matter how hard she tried to think Vie's words would slip away, as if she was grabbing at a feather falling through the air that always blew just out of reach at the last moment. Unable to handle any more Bulma promptly rolled onto her side and drifted off into a restless slumber.

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Bulma has managed to escape Medon's grasp, can Vegeta do the same? Find out next time on Dragonball Z!


End file.
